


Dawn Will Come

by CloudMonsta



Series: Vball Babs: Origins [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Origins, Haikyuu!!
Genre: (it warranted a tag of its own lol), Adventure, Blood, Blood Magic, Bonding, Character Development, Darkspawn, Dragon Age AU, Dragons, Fantasy, Grey Warden Joining, Grey Wardens, Multi, Nightmares, Sad Cuddling, Slow Burn, but also bonding!!! and cute!, cousland origin, idk I'll add tags as I go probably, it's a dragon age au so there's gonna be lots of death and sads, they'll appear later I promise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-20
Updated: 2017-01-07
Packaged: 2018-05-22 06:50:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 44,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6069376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CloudMonsta/pseuds/CloudMonsta
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When it all began, Hinata Shouyou Cousland was just 17 years old, and getting prepared to become the heir to the Cousland estate.</p><p>He never suspected he would become the Hero of Ferelden.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Couslands of Highever

**Author's Note:**

> Great big thanks to my betas, Rowan and Siseja! Couldn't have done it without you. Enjoy!

When it all began, Hinata Shouyou Cousland was just 17 years old, and getting prepared to become the heir to the Cousland estate.

It was a day like any other. Hinata had gotten a _touch_ too excited with his sparring practice, and one of his daggers may or may not have ended up just out of reach, on a ledge in the garden. He's trying to get it down when a voice startles him.

"Hinata, what are you doing up there?"

Hinata lets out an ungainly squeak, and finds his fingertips accidentally catching the edge of the handle of his dagger, watching with wide eyes as it tips off the edge and buries itself in in the grass near the speaker's feet. With a nervous frown, Hinata hops back off the wall.

"Sorry, Ser Koji, I may have gotten a little… heh, excitable, during training just now," he says, with a few embarrassed chuckles. "Thanks," he mumbles as Koji reaches down and passes Hinata the blade, feeling like his cheeks are on fire.

Hinata's known Ser Koji his entire life – he grew up playing with the man five years his senior. Sometimes Koji seems like his best friend, and other times he acts more like a mentor. Most of the time the boys just get into trouble together. Hinata has grown up in the relative lap of luxury, and usually when he needs to train with someone his own size, his parents bring Ser Koji in to spar with him. Although, in recent years, Koji has grown quite a bit taller than Hinata.

Hinata tries not to hold that against him.

"Honestly, I'm not even surprised anymore," Koji says with a sigh, shaking his head. "But anyway, that's not why I came out here to get you. You're needed in the larder."

" _Again?_ " Hinata groans, throwing his head back. "That's the third time this week!" Quickly switching tracks, he turns his bright brown eyes on his companion. "You should spar with me instead!"

Koji raises one long eyebrow at Hinata's excited proposal for a moment, a hand propped up on his hip, before shaking his head in affectionate exasperation. "No, Hinata. It's a necessary evil – your father is entertaining Arl Howe, and you _know_ the hounds don't listen to me."

"And _you_ know they don't listen to me, either!" Hinata counters, already leading the way back into the estate from the courtyard. Hopefully no one notices the slightly-smashed flowers along the wall that he's left behind. "They just think it's funny that they can still put their paws on my shoulders," he says with a pout, turning down the hallway that leads down to the kitchens. Hinata side-eyes Koji's height with thinly veiled jealously. "ONE DAY!!" He shouts, with a barely-restrained hop.

Koji glances over at the young adult, grinning affectionately. "Mhm, sure, one day you'll be taller than _everyone_ , Shouyou," he teases, reaching over to ruffle a hand through his friend's unruly orange locks. "But in the meantime, we need to get down to the larder before the cook decides to take the losses to the pantry outta our hides."

Hinata's face drops in fear, remembering the last time the dogs had gotten into the larder. Their cook is a force to reckon with, and sometimes she can be just as scary as Hinata's own mother. "Yeah… right…" He nods, speeding up his pace _just_ a touch.

…

"AND GET THOSE BLASTED DOGS _OUT_ OF MY KITCHEN!!"

The shout bounces against the walls behind them, and Hinata winces.

"Yes ma'am!" He squeaks, rushing into the larder, prepared to use his best Mom's-Stern-Voice impersonation to scold the dogs about breaking into the pantry _again_. Honestly, they only get in more trouble each time, and mabari are supposed to be _smart_ , they should know better by now!

Hinata quickly slides into the larder, and opens his mouth to scold the dogs, but hardly has the time to register the door closing behind him before something very large and _very_ furry and _very much not a dog_ rushes right past his feet and he screeches in surprise.

"Shouyou, are you alright?!" Koji comes rushing into the room after him, and finds Hinata with his daggers out, advancing slowly towards a corner of the room where the dogs are clustered.

"Rats, it's _rats_ ," Hinata hisses as he glances back at Koji, his face set in a determined frown.

"Yikes, alright well let's take care of them and _do not_ let the cook kno- ANDRASTE'S _KNICKERWEASALS_ THOSE ARE SOME LARGE RODENTS!"

Hinata widens his eyes at Koji in alarm and hisses at him to shut up, but can't blame him. The rats are half the size of the dogs, and mabari are _not_ small. Hopefully the cook didn't hear Koji's alarmed shout.

They carefully advance, Koji managing to get the dogs to back up and away from the corner. As soon as they do, Hinata lunges forward before the rats can realize they now had a free passageway into the rest of the room.

He sweeps his daggers low, catching the first rat along the side and feeling sick as he slices into its flesh. The blood left on his daggers looks darker than normal, almost a contaminated black. Who _knew_ what kind of diseases these things could be carrying?

In his attempt to scurry after the second rodent, he slips, only just managing to catch himself on his arm, and finds himself skidding along the floor, face _worryingly_ close to the beast's sharp teeth. With a disgusted yelp, he swings his other arm around to stab it through the skull, extremely glad when it almost immediately stops moving.

"Rats are _never_ supposed to get this big," he whispers in disgust, as he sees his forearm lined up with the rodent's body. It looks scrawny in comparison. He jumps up and away from it, shivering and fighting back a gag at the sight of the two rodent corpses on the floor. Gross.

"However big they are, we've got to get them out of here before the cook sees!" Koji whisper-hisses urgently, his eyes darting back to the door and a worried look on his face. Right at that moment, a loud knock sounds on the door, and both boys start to panic.

"Right, right, okay, you distract her, and I'll get the bodies outside," Hinata agrees, quickly moving to try to convince the dogs to pick up the bodies so he doesn't have to touch them while Koji runs out to stall the cook.

"Was everything alright in there? I heard quite the commotion."

"Oh yes, yes, everything's quite fine! We were just straightening things up, and giving those hounds a stern talking to, you know," Koji bullshits, moving to the side to keep the cook's attention on him as Hinata quickly shoos the dogs toward the kitchen door.

The cook frowns slightly, but keeps her eyes on Koji. "Are you quite sure-"

"Did I tell you that you look stunning today?" Koji cuts in, wide eyes ruining his sweet talk as he sees Hinata sneaking out the door. "Absolutely fantastic!"

"Now don't you try to butter me up, Ser Koji; you know I don't fall for that," the cook scolds, though she has a small smile on her face.

As soon as Koji sees Hinata making it into the hallway, he quickly shouts, "SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE!" and runs out the door and down the hallway. He chases after Hinata, and the dogs quickly follow behind, hot on their heels as if it were all a fun game.

…

Once they're out in the courtyard, Hinata and Koji allow themselves a moment to pause and catch their breath. Hinata looks up from where he's bent over, panting, and catches Koji doing the same, hands resting heavily on his knees. They make eye contact for the briefest moment, and Hinata can't resist anymore: he bursts out laughing.

"'Did I mention you look stunning today'," Hinata wheezes out between great whoops of laughter, "I can't believe you said that!"

"You were almost out the door!" Koji giggles back, "I had to keep her attention _somehow_."

Hinata simply cackles, wiping a tear from his eye as he collapses onto a nearby bench. "Either way, it was hilarious," he says, grinning widely.

"Yes. And it's _never_ happening again," Koji agrees, plopping next to him on the bench, his limbs spreading out. "Maker, but I can't believe it actually _worked_ ," he says to himself, watching as the dogs wander off to an empty patch in the flowerbeds, happily burying the spoils of their battle.

Koji gets up to go back to his duties, and Hinata has just started to calm back down, when three men walk into the courtyard.

Hinata's father, Teyrn Shoji Cousland, leads the group, followed immediately by Arl Howe and a third person whom Hinata doesn't recognize. Teyrn Cousland is a broad-shouldered man, with a strong presence and sharp wit. He has the same bright shock of orange hair as his son, though his is cropped short. His hair and wide eyes may be the only thing he shares with his children in terms of looks, but he has a playful streak that leads to many pranks within the estate walls. In fact, his "games" of playing rogue are one of the many reasons why Hinata is so good at sneaking around, not to mention his affinity for climbing things and being in places he shouldn't.

Arl Tendou Howe, on the other hand, has longer dark red hair, and is overall much narrower than the Teyrn. He comes around the estate often, bringing news of politics and meetings, and likes to wear this wide-open smile that grates on Hinata's nerves for some reason. But he is still a guest, as is the stranger, and Hinata doesn't want to embarrass his father, so he straightens up and hops off the bench as they approach.

Arl Howe brings out that grin as he spots Hinata, calling out, "Ah! Look at your boy, Shoji, it's been years since I've seen him." He gives Hinata a quick once over, taking in his loose tunic and slightly-too-large breeches. "He's grown… well, maybe not _up_ , but he's aged well!" He says with a laugh, smirking right at Hinata.

Hinata wants to frown angrily at him, but his father taught him manners, so instead he decides to make use of the famed Cousland wit. He steps up to them, staring the Arl down as he quips, "Rogues are _supposed_ to be little."

Before Arl Howe can respond much past a quick sputter, Teyrn Cousland interrupts with a bright laugh. "Come now, Tendou, be nice to the boy," he chuckles, while Hinata grins from just behind him.

With the slightest of smiles on his face, the man in the back quietly asks, "So this is your boy then, Teyrn Cousland?" and Hinata finds his attention snapping to the third man.

He isn't actually all that interesting, Hinata finds, at least not like Arl Howe or his father. He's got relatively short, curly black hair, and nothing all that special about his face besides his narrow eyes, even if he could be considered kind of pretty. He isn't particularly broad, nor is he narrow, falling somewhere in the middle between the two far ends of the spectrum that are his father and Arl Howe. He isn't wearing any kind of armor, but then again neither are the other two, so Hinata can't guess at his rank or position – but since he's here with Arl Howe, perhaps there was another political meeting? The clothes that he's wearing are fitted, a long-sleeved, dark blue tunic with metallic accents hanging comfortably over top a pair of dark breeches. His boots are large, and show wear, so Hinata knows he travels, though he can't make much of a guess as to where, or what he might have been doing.

Which is what makes his father's next comment particularly interesting.

"Ah, yes, this is him," he begins, a slightly strained smile on his face that Hinata can't quite interpret. "Akaashi, this is my son, Hinata," he says, gesturing to each as he speaks. "Shouyou," he continues, turning to him with a meaningful glance that says he had better be on his _best_ behavior, "this is Warden Commander Akaashi."

The exact moment that the words "warden-commander" process in Hinata's mind are clear, as his mouth slowly drops open and his eyes widen, almost glittering with excitement. He looks back at the stranger with newfound interest, awe clearly written across his face. He'd heard stories about the grey wardens ever since he was a kid, bedtime stories about defeating the darkspawn, beating back the blights over the years, and riding majestic gryffons to swoop in and take out the archdemon. Wardens are the _pinnacle_ of cool boyhood heroes, and Hinata can't believe that right now, in this moment, he is being introduced to one!! And not just _any_ warden either, but the warden-commander!!! He feels like vibrating with excitement, and doesn't even notice he is bouncing on his heels until his father places a hand on his shoulder to hold him still.

Before he can realize he should maybe _say_ something instead of just staring at Akaashi as if he'd suddenly thrown out a pair of majestic wings and took to the sky, he's distracted by his father saying something. "Wuh- sorry?" He manages, summoning the strength of a qunari to swing his gaze back up to his dad and away from the GREY WARDEN.

"I _said_ ," his father repeats, and Hinata can tell he is trying to be patient with him, "could you go find your sister? I need to talk with the Warden Commander and Tendou, and your mother was looking for the two of you."

Hinata's eyes flick between the Warden Commander and his father, his mind working double time. Sometimes he is allowed to sit in on the meetings, and most of the time they were really boring, but he needs to learn how to handle the estate, if he's going to be his father's successor…

Almost as if his father could read his mind (and considering how obvious his facial expressions are, he probably can), he puts his other hand on Hinata's corresponding shoulder. "If you wake up extra early, you might get some time to talk to him at breakfast tomorrow," he tentatively promises, raising his eyebrows and waiting for Hinata's response.

"Can't I talk to him just a liiiiiiiiiiittle tonight?" Hinata asks, trying out his best pleading face.

"You _are_ a little."

"Tendou, don't be rude," Teyrn Cousland shoots over his shoulder, before turning back to Hinata, "and no, Shouyou. Off you go. Find your sister, and off to your mother with you. Go on," he encourages, waving a hand gently.

Hinata sighs, but allows himself to be shooed off, looking forward to _possibly_ getting to talk to the Warden Commander (!!!!) in the morning. He darts off around the corner, only just hearing the tail end of the conversation before he passes out of earshot.

"Sorry for the ruckus in the morning. He's easily excited."

"It's really no bother at all."

…

Hinata creeps along the floor, carefully placing each foot as silently as possible. He moves slowly, so as not to alert his prey, and carefully raises his arms once he is in place. With one big, silent inhale, he claps his hands down across his sister's eyes, shouting out "GUESS WHO!"

Natsu squeals loudly, kicking her feet out and throwing her arms up to scrabble at Hinata's hands. Hinata lets her pull them off, only to dart his fingertips down to her sides, tickling her with no mercy, leading to even louder giggles.

Natsu slithers out of her chair, sliding down amongst the legs and diving for Hinata's waist, taking him down to the ground with a triumphant yell. Once she has firmly settled herself on top of his chest, one leg on either side with her skirt rucked up to her knees, she grins victoriously. "Who else would it be but you, you're the only one who shouts so loudly when sneaking!" She teases, a bright grin stretching across her face and showcasing the gap where she'd recently lost her last baby tooth.

"It's not a shout," Hinata laughs back, throwing an arm up to ruffle her hair affectionately, "it was a _battle cry_. Also, mom wants to see us."

"Uhuh, battle cry, sure thing Shou," Natsu giggles disbelievingly, sliding off to the side and gently kicking his ribs when he doesn't immediately get up.

As they walk down the hallway to their parents' room, Natsu nuzzles into Hinata's side, and Hinata tells her about his day, the adventures he had with Koji and the hounds, and how he met THE WARDEN COMMANDER and it was SO COOL, NATSU.

"What's he like?" Natsu pipes up, in the middle of Hinata's rambling about how Arl Howe was RUDE but he had had the PERFECT COMBACK.

"The Warden Commander?" Hinata asks, and Natsu nods in response. Hinata shrugs, running a hand through his hair and scratching at his scalp. "I don't know, dad sent me off to find you, _but_ I bet he's amazing! All like WHAM POW WOOSH just like in the stories! I wonder if he even has a _gryffon_?!"

Natsu laughs, jabbing him in the side, "You read those stories too much! There hasn't been a blight in ages," and Hinata giggles back with her.

"I know, but it's fun to think about, don't you think?" Hinata smiles affectionately down at her, throwing his arm around her shoulders to draw her close. "Just imagine, grand adventures, killing darkspawn, saving the world…!! It'd be fantastic."

…

"Ah! You two look like a mess! My darling children," their mother tuts as she reaches out to straighten their hair, smiling at them both. She licks a finger and rubs some dirt from Hinata's grinning face, which scrunches up in distaste as she works it out. She then turns to Natsu and reaches out to straighten her dress, pulling the sleeves back into place. "I swear, what will I ever do with you two…" she grumbles affectionately, leading them into the large front room, a sitting room of sorts, that composes half of the Cousland parents' quarters.

"Love us and care for us?" Hinata suggests, bouncing down onto one of the couches in the center of the room.

"Feed us and never leave us?" Natsu adds, grinning as she pushes her sleeves back up her arms to where they were before.

"Something like that," their mother says, a half-exasperated grin on her face at their antics.

Just then, Teyrn Cousland walks in, and Hinata and Natsu bound up to greet him with hugs. He ruffles their hair at the same time, one hand for each head, which only causes their mother to sigh affectionately.

Hinata wriggles out from underneath his hand and half-shouts, just a touch too loudly, "You didn't need me to find Natsu at all! She was right in her room!"

Teyrn Cousland chuckles, and shoots his wife a loving smile, "Nah, I just wanted to get all of us together for one last night before I have to go."

Natsu grins from where she's got her arms wrapped around her father's waist, and teases, "Yeah, and he had to get YOUR BIG GOOBER FACE OUTTA HIS HAIR while he talked to that greeeeeeeey wardennnn."

Hinata groans out her name as he shoves his hand in her face, before peering up at his father. "The Warden Commander was SO COOL; what'd he want to say? Is he marching out with you and Arl Howe in the morning??"

His mother gently reaches forward, detaching Hinata from his father's side long enough to lean in and give him a peck on the cheek. "Hush now, Hinata, and listen to what your father has to say."

"Now, as you all know, I'm going to be marching out in the morning with, yes, Warden Commander Akaashi and Arl Howe. Shouyou, you'll be in charge of the estate while I'm gone. Ask Ser Koji for help if you need anything. Protect your mother, your sister, and everyone within its walls to the best of your ability," he directs, nodding at Hinata's serious face, before turning to Natsu with a wink. "And Natsu, try not to drive your big brother insane while he's in charge, alright?"

Natsu sighs dramatically and leans against where her arms are still wrapped around her father's waist, but agrees. "I _suppose_ ," she says, swaying slightly back and forth, before perking up and asking, "How long are you gonna be gone, Poppa?"

Teyrn Cousland sighs gently, and leans down to pick up his daughter, even though she's really getting too big for that (ten year olds aren't exactly made to be easily carried). He pokes a finger gently at her nose until she beams in response and starts to giggle. "Don't really know, pumpkin – King Bokuto needs strong, able warriors at the front lines! And when the king calls on a Cousland, what do we do?" he asks, looking between his daughter and his son.

"Answer speedily and efficiently!" Hinata and Natsu cheer out together, earning a laugh from their father before he draws both them and their mother all into his arms.

"That's my boy," he says, squeezing an arm around Hinata tightly, "and my little lady," he adds, kissing Natsu gently on the forehead.

"To a winning battle," he begins.

"And a safe return, may the Maker watch over you," his wife finishes, squeezing her arms around her family in a tight hug. After she releases them, and her husband sets Natsu back down on the ground, she slips right back into mothering-mode. "Now, off to bed with the both of you, it's to be early rising to see your father off in the morning."

…

That night, Hinata is roused from his deep sleep by his mother's urgent shaking. "Shouyou, get up, the castle is under attack!"

Hinata jerks awake, sitting up quickly and throwing back the covers as his mother grabs his daggers from his chest for him. While he pulls on a shirt, his brain starts to recognize the sounds of metal clashing against metal, the crackling of flames, and the screams and barks of the hounds over the sound of his racing heart. His eyes adjust to the darkness as he snaps his daggers on, listening to what his mother is saying.

"It startedou attackt up, the castle ihave to move fast.'

g back to where they'd barricated next to him, her knees and legs splashing after all of us had gone to sleep, when the guard switched and we were unaware. We've got to get out – they've set fire to whatever they could, the whole castle's filling with smoke." She turns back around, looking steadily at her son as he pulls his boots on, double-time. "I'm going to get your sister. Meet us at the underground passageway through the kitchens."

"What about dad? The family sword?" Hinata asks, following her to the doorway, where she's quietly peeking out to see what's happening. Hinata strains his ears, but he can't hear anything beyond the popping and snapping of burning wood right outside the door, so they should be able to get by.

"Leave it! Your father will catch up with us. The kitchen, Shouyou, and _stay safe_!" She shouts as she throws open the door, running down the passageway as quickly as she can, barreling through the flames that are licking up the sides of the hallway towards Natsu's room.

Hinata doesn't hesitate, and quickly takes off down the opposite direction, towards the kitchens. He can trust his mother to get Natsu there safely; he should try to make the pathway to the kitchens as clear as he can. When he hears the sound of battle ahead of him, he draws his daggers out, rushing forward.

As he turns the corner, he finds Ser Koji hard-pressed to keep a slew of eight men back, wide slashes of his broadsword only doing so much. Hinata quickly clears his mind, not allowing himself to think about anything except for the combat he's about to engage in. A single distraction could end in untimely death. He quickly sneaks up behind the closest man, slicing his dagger across his throat before he even notices Hinata is there.

The next closest two turn, ready to charge on their new target, giving Koji a light reprieve. Hinata doesn't even hesitate for a second after killing the first, and fights with speed and finesse, parrying the blade of the man to his right and ducking to avoid the blow of the man to his left. With a quick roll, Hinata slices along the back of one man's ankles, popping up to his feet at the same time the man he'd hit goes down. It's… strange, doing all of this with real people and a sharp blade, in the middle of a hallway in his home. But he doesn't have time to think about it, and surges forward, knocking the butt of his dagger soundly against another's head, not even pausing to watch him stumble backwards before jumping to the next enemy.

"Shouyou, watch out!" Koji shouts, and Hinata turns around just in time to duck out of the way of a shield barreling at him, stumbling backwards and falling onto the floor. One of his daggers skids out of his hand, and before he can scramble after it, it's been kicked away by the feet of one of the others.

Thinking quickly, Hinata hauls himself up to his feet, bursting back into the foray only to be slammed aside by an armor-clad arm. Fighting in real life is much harsher than practice matches and sparring with one or two others. He careens back into the shield-wielding terror who'd hit him before, and they both go down, dazed. Hinata gets back up from the impact immediately, a little dizzy but overall fine, having had practice with being accidentally slammed into unforgiving objects many times over the years of wrestling with his sister and friends.

"Koji!" He shouts, seeing his friend getting closed in on both sides by the two remaining men, bodies strewn about the floor. It feels as if there's no end to these men, even though there had only been eight of them left when Hinata had arrived. With a battle cry, Hinata leaps forward and onto the back of one of the men, wrapping his arm around his neck and pulling his elbow in tight against the other's windpipe. There are a few seconds of flailing and scrabbling at his arms, before they both go down, the other's body landing on top of Hinata.

Wind thoroughly knocked out of him, it takes Hinata a few seconds to come back to his senses, and when he does, he can't even begin to lift the heavy body on top of him. It's his own fault, and he knows that the other is thoroughly knocked out, not about to get up or move anytime soon. His shouts drown in his throat with dread when he sees Koji go down, the final man turning around and, not seeing Hinata, quickly moving on down the hallway. Looking around frantically, Hinata spots the dagger that had gotten knocked out of his hand, and manages to wriggle out from under the body just enough to get at a good angle, and throws the dagger with deadly accuracy.

It flies through the air in a clean arc, the tip landing with a thud just above the neck of the other man's armor, sliding in and cutting deep into the flesh. The man falls with a cry, and Hinata allows himself a silent moment of internal congratulations – he was as certain he'd miss and glance off the armor as he'd hit flesh. He sobers when he glances over at Koji, however, and finds the man not moving – and covered in a _worrying_ amount of blood. Hinata pushes and shoves at the body atop himself, with more strength than he realized he had, and manages to slide free at last, immediately rushing to Koji's side.

"Koji!" He cries out, falling to the ground next to him, "Koji, where are you hurt?"

Momentary relief floods through him when Koji's eyes flicker open, but is almost immediately dashed upon hearing how weak his voice is.

"Shouyou," Koji speaks quietly, so Hinata has to lean forward to hear, "take… this." He presses something cold into Hinata's hand, and he looks down at the object in confusion.

"The key to the vault… why did you have…?"

"Get out… safely…" Koji pleads, "don't let him get away… with this…"

"Koji, Koji I'm _not_ leaving you behind!" Hinata shouts, trying to figure out where all the blood on Koji is coming from. It couldn't all be his, he was holding his own, if he can only stop the bleeding… His eyes flick back up to Koji's face as he releases Hinata's hand and leans back, closing his eyes. "Koji! …. Koji!?"

Hinata is distraught with these events, but he doesn't have time to mourn. He can hear the sounds of clashing and shouting getting closer to the hallway he's kneeling in. He has a split second to make a decision, and as he grips the key tighter in his hand, tears dripping down his cheeks, he doesn't waste time.

His mother had said to leave the family sword behind, but it is part of the Cousland legacy, having been handed down for generations, ever since they took over the teyrnir of Highever. If they're going to destroy his home and everything else that stands for the Cousland family, he can't just leave it behind.

Mind made up, Hinata sprints down the hallway, picking his other dagger up from the neck of the man he'd downed as he runs past, ignoring the flicks of blood that drip off its blade behind him, and heading towards the vault.

…

Somehow, Hinata manages to get to the vault and procure the family sword without too many incidents. He's sweating heavily, his heart is racing, his stomach feels like it's going to reject his entire body and jump up through his throat to join his heart. He's ducked around corners to avoid too many battles to count, but he made it and now he's got the sword strapped to his back. Thankfully, the kitchen isn't very far from this part of the estate, and he wipes an arm across his forehead before heading back into the fray.

Right as he turns a corner, he runs into the Warden Commander fighting off three people at once, and Hinata rushes forward, fueled by the thought of what he couldn't do for Koji. He charges forward and snags one of the enemies' legs, pulling it backward roughly while slashing through the edges of another's armor along the wrist. No wonder Koji always scolded him when he didn't wear properly thick gloves with gauntlets, he thinks in shock.

"Hinata, duck!" The Warden Commander shouts out, and Hinata manages to get out of the way just in time for him to slash against the third man's breastplate with enough force that it begins to crack.

As the Warden Commander delivers the finishing blow to the man, Hinata places a well-aimed kick against the head of the one he'd tripped up, knocking him back down. Both men go down, and Hinata doesn't even have a moment to spare to be in awe of the fact that he is _fighting alongside the Warden Commander_ , but that's partially because he's trying not to get lost in the _fear of his childhood home being turned into a battlefield._

Instead he shoves it all into a box in his brain, and turns, shouting, "Follow me! There's a cellar passageway!" And leads the rush back through the other end of the hallway towards the kitchen.

They run through the hallways, Hinata leading, Akaashi following and slashing down any whom they encounter, and Hinata's mother and sister nearly run into them when they reach the door to the kitchen.

"Mother! Natsu!"

"Shouyou!"

"SHOU!"

Hinata didn't know relief could feel as good as it does when he grabs Natsu tight in his arms while his mother ushers them all into the kitchen. With no time to spare, Akaashi helps Lady Cousland bar the door against the angry warriors chasing them.

"Into the larder, now, everyone," Lady Cousland urges, guiding them all further into the kitchen, and Hinata pushes Natsu through the door first.

The high pitched, wailing scream tips them off that something is even more wrong than everything already is.

Hinata rushes in after her, nearly slipping on the pool of blood on the floor, and yanking Natsu back before he even looks at the body. By the looks of it, whoever had been in here had already moved on, but they hadn't left without a battle. He feels like he's not even in his own body at this point, numb to his surroundings as he breathes shallowly.

Sadly, that numbness doesn't last.

Hinata's heart stops when he recognizes the body lying, still, in the bloody pool, and then rams back to life with a vengeance when the body twitches.

"Oh, Shoji, my husband," Hinata's mother rushes forward, not caring as she kneels down next to him, her knees and legs splashing quietly against the blood. There is so much of it.

"We've only got a few moments," Akaashi says, looking back to where they'd barricaded the larder door as well, "we'll have to move fast."

Gripping a bloody hand tight against her bicep, Teyrn Cousland looks directly at his wife. "It's Tendou. He's betrayed us."

Tears well up in Lady Cousland's eyes, and she lets them freely spill as she barks orders. "Shouyou, the passageway is under the grain. Uncover it and get inside with your sister."

Hinata jumps to action, pulling Natsu along with him, lifting the heavy packages to the side to uncover a wooden door that sits neatly flush with the floor. He refuses to let himself even _think_ about his father, on the floor, covered in blood… so much blood…

"Akaashi!" Lady Cousland barks, and the Warden Commander hops immediately to her side. "I can't leave my husband behind. I'll buy you some time. You take my children and you _keep them safe, Warden-Commander. You keep my children fucking safe._ "

Hinata has never heard his mother swear before, but he doesn't have time to even realize what her words mean before Akaashi is nodding, and pushing him and Natsu further into the passageway, picking Natsu up bodily when she grapples and grasps for her mother's arms.

"Momma! Momma, NO!"

"I'll try to buy you some time. Now GO!" She shouts, slamming the door against their heads as soon as they're in deep enough, and they can hear something heavy scraping as it's dragged over the top.

"MOTHER!" Hinata shouts at the passageway, unable to hold the sobs back. This can't be happening. This isn't real. This is just a nightmare, a horrible nightmare that he's having, any minute now his mother will come in and shake him awake and hold him tight to calm him down-

"We've got to get moving, or her sacrifice will have been for nothing," Akaashi bites out, pulling Hinata away from the trap door when they start to hear the beginning of a battle, metal clashing against metal and shouts from up above. "We've got to move, _now_!"

"No, we can't- WE CAN'T LEAVE HER! MOTHER!" Hinata cries out and pushes against Akaashi's grip.

Akaashi grabs Hinata by the chest, and slams him bodily into the wall. "I promised your mother I would keep you safe," he barks, "and I'm damn well going to keep my promise. Now we need to _move_."

Hinata sobs harder, terrified at the harsh tone, but knows it leaves no room for argument. With a loud sniff, he jerkily nods his head, before feeling too sick from the harsh movement to hold it back anymore. He quickly turns to the side, and his stomach empties its contents against the wall violently, but it doesn't make Hinata feel any better. When he's finished, Akaashi grips his hand tightly, and they run blindly along the passageway, leaving the horror and stench behind them, Natsu's cries echoing horribly from where she's held securely in the Warden Commander's arms.

…

That night, Hinata curls his arms around his little sister, where she is fitfully dozing, her cheeks stained with tear tracks, soot, and dirt. The likelihood of their mother surviving… Hinata doesn't want to think about it, but he daren't even hope. He feels numb, his stomach feels like it'll never accept food ever again, and he's afraid of what he'll feel like when it all becomes real. His shirt is soaked through with Natsu's hiccupping sobs, and now that she's finally asleep, he allows his own tears to begin leaking silently.

There's just one thing he can't understand… why would Tendou, Arl Howe, betray them like that?

"I'm taking you with me to Ostagar," Akaashi says quietly, sitting down gently next to Hinata.

"…the war camp?" He whispers, voice sounding small and weak even to his own ears. He forces his brain to focus, focus on _something,_ anything, that isn't what just happened. Ostagar… Ostagar was where his father was going to march out with the Arl that morning. Where they were to support the king's troops.

Akaashi nods, still moving slowly, as if afraid to startle Hinata, or touch him, lest he break. Hinata feels like he could break right now. He feels like he's all sharp jagged insides, and the only thing that's holding him together is the glue from Natsu's tears. He has to be strong… strong for his baby sister. She's only _ten_. And now he's… he's the only family she's got left. He has to make it a good one.

"I know it doesn't sound like a safe place, but right now…" Akaashi trails off, curling up next to the siblings,"…for now, that's the best way I can keep my promise to your mother."

Hinata wants to reply, but he feels like his throat's choked up with all of the emotions he's been trying not to feel all night, so he simply nods instead. At the mention of his mother, he feels like not even Natsu's sniffling breaths can hold him together anymore.

Akaashi places both arms around Hinata, and consequently, Natsu, too. For the slightest of moments, Hinata feels secure. Protected. Even though everything in his mind and heart are screaming at him that the reality of it is the absolute opposite. As the sun begins to rise, Akaashi nestles them down a little deeper into the pile of dried leaves they'd gathered into a makeshift bed. "Try to get some sleep, if you can," he whispers, "we've a long day's travels ahead of us."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND THUS IT B E G I N S
> 
> Welcome to my massive dragon age au fic that throws my favorite volleyball children into what is roughly the Cousland origin story (with some fun twists, of course). Hope you enjoy your stay.


	2. Ostagar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Hinata's first time in a war camp, and he can't say he isn't impressed...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to mention at the end of the first chapter:  
> Come visit me over at cloudmonstachopper on tumblr, and if you want me to see anything you do with this series, just tag it "#vball babs origins" :D

As they make their way towards Ostagar, Hinata spends most of the time oddly quiet. He comforts Natsu where he can, and can't help but think about all that's happened in the past week. It still doesn't feel real.

It takes them a few days to actually get to Ostagar, but they still reach the war camp earlier than the originally planned army would have. Not by much, though – they are, after all, traveling with a child (or, if you were to ask Akaashi, two children). They could only cover so much ground in a day.

When they reach the outskirts of the war camp, it's early morning, the third day since they've left home. Hinata is tired, and hungry, and aches just about all over – he hadn't realized how _exhausting_ marching was, until he was doing it himself. He could only imagine how Natsu felt, though she had hardly complained at all. Both of them had been quiet while they traveled, and the warden commander didn't seem to be the type to keep up a conversation just for the sake of it.

Natsu is walking behind Hinata, one hand gripping the side of his breeches, when they're first approached by someone. They still haven't entered the war camp proper, but it looks huge, sprawling out before Hinata's eyes. Seeing it in front of him, all of the tents and people milling about below, looking down from the edge of a set of ruined stairs… well, it makes _something_ come alive in Hinata's chest. He's not exactly sure what. Wonder, maybe.

"Akaashi! You're early! You wouldn't _believe_ how frustrating that Templar is, I swear he hovers over me just to get on my nerves…" The man who calls out to them makes Hinata think of Ser Koji, for a split second, because he doesn't look all that much older than Hinata himself. He's wearing the same blue patterned tunic that Akaashi wore, although instead of a lot of heavy armor he had a few simple pieces, a cloth hood, and what looked like a staff strapped to his back. A mage, Hinata figures.

"Is the army behind you?" The man asks as he jogs up to them, and Hinata can get a good look at his face. He's got dark black hair, hanging straight around his face and into his eyes, but doesn't seem to mind it. His face has a sharp, almost angular quality to it, and when he narrows his eyes upon seeing Akaashi's companions, Hinata thinks he almost looks angry.

"Why do you have a child with you?" Angry-eyebrows asks, and glares down at Natsu. Instinctively, Hinata lets his hand drift down to where she grips his pants, and feels her little fingers latch hard onto his. She's cowering behind Hinata, only peeking out at the other man intermittently, and Hinata can honestly say he knows how she feels. This mage looks angry and intimidating, and Hinata's stomach is already roiling in response.

"…what happened out there, Akaashi?" He asks, and that's when Hinata realizes that the warden commander's been just as quiet as he has. Hinata glances over, taking in the commander's face, lined with exhaustion as he sighs.

"It's a long story," Akaashi says, glancing over at Natsu and Hinata for a moment before looking back out at the war camp. "Where's the King?"

"King Bokuto's over by his tent. I think he was meeting with Wakatoshi."

"Thanks." And that's all Akaashi says, just starts walking towards the center of the war camp, with the other man walking by his side. Hinata and Natsu trail behind, not knowing what else to do but follow, and Hinata finds himself wishing he were big enough to carry Natsu through camp as she curls up tight against his back and side, hand gripping his fingers even tighter. He'll do his best to reassure her, but he can't help but stare around at everything as they walk further in.

There are tents everywhere, it seems, and all sorts of people milling about. Mages, soldiers, and even what looked like a few chantry sisters. No one really pays too much attention to their party, though Hinata and Natsu do get a few curious glances as they pass by what looks like a large stage. Hinata wonders what it would be used for… speeches, maybe? It seems like everyone is running around in armor, and Hinata has never in his life seen so many variations: heavy, light, spiked and decorated, or flat and plain, metal or leather or some combination of materials that Hinata can't place. He hadn't even known you could _make_ that many different kinds of armor. Just as they walk near a large, central fire pit, one of the heavily-armored men speed walks up to them, making a beeline for the mage who'd first greeted them.

"I swear you're always wandering off, up to no good I'm sure," he practically hisses at the mage, pulling off his helmet to reveal narrow golden eyes that match his short-cropped curls. Hinata's eyes widen at his tone, wondering if everyone in this camp is angry. These two clearly don't like each other, as angry-eyebrows hisses right back that he's got free reign of the camp. The tension is running high, and even Natsu can feel it, curling her other hand against Hinata's breeches and hiding behind him as best as she could. Hinata's eyes dart between the two of them, and then to Akaashi, who looks like he's about to step in and say something, when a loud voice bellows through the camp.

"Hey hey hey! Commander Akaashi!"

When Hinata's gaze swerves to see who the voice belongs to, he starts in recognition: even he's heard the stories, and he knows enough to recognize King Bokuto on sight. He's wearing a lighter armor than the blond man, and rather than a dagger and leaf motif it's graced with meticulously crafted owls, their wings spread wide in flight. Hinata breathes a sigh of relief at the sight of his wide, open face, spread with a bright grin as he rushes up to Akaashi, enveloping him in a hug. His hair is long across the top, pulled in a tight braid that ends in a tiny ponytail at the back, and is a shockingly bright white color. The sides and back of his scalp are clipped tight, and Hinata's confused at first at the dark black color – did he not wash properly? (A distant part of his mind recalls something his mother would say when sending him to the bath, to make sure he gets 'from the root of your hair to your feet in your boots, and everything in between, little mister,' and he has to fight back a lump in his throat. A thought that has bounced in his head while they traveled returns with a whisper: maybe if he had been a grey warden, he could have saved her. But he isn't and he couldn't and he didn't.)

When King Bokuto draws back, however, Hinata can see his eyebrows and the stubble on his face are all that dark black color, so something must have happened to make the longer portion white. If it were another time, he might have wondered what caused it, but instead he finds himself focusing on the barrage of questions that flow out of his mouth.

"We weren't expecting you 'til nightfall!" King Bokuto crows with excitement, before pausing, looking around them. "But where's Tendou? And the armies? Are they still over the ridge?" He asks, peering up at the stairs they'd descended earlier, as if he would suddenly see a whole battalion crossing into the camp. When Akaashi doesn't provide answers immediately, his gaze flicks around once more, this time landing on Hinata.

"Is this really Commander Cousland? I thought he was… old. And bigger. Why is he crying?" Hinata feels numb as the questions seem to continue without ever stopping, and slowly lifts the hand not being gripped by his little sister up to his face. Huh. He _is_ crying. Deciding he's been doing that too much this past week, he quickly scrubs his arm across his eyes, drying the tears.

King Bokuto's energy doesn't seem to ever stop, however, and his eyes widen when he spots Natsu. "Why do you have a child with you, Akaashi?" He asks, curiosity seeming to exude from his very presence, before sending Natsu a bright smile and a wave. "Hullo there!" He chirps.

Natsu clenches Hinata's hand harder in response to the attention, and an idle part of his mind wonders if he's going to lose feeling sometime soon. After a moment of silence, peering up at King Bokuto, she offers him a jerky little nod. King Bokuto seems to like that, brightening up considerably.

Akaashi simply sighs, for what might be the seventh time since they've entered the camp. "Ugh. We have so many things to discuss," he says, rubbing his eyes wearily and mumbling something. Hinata can't quite catch it, but he thinks it might have been something like 'I hate my life.'

His suspicions are confirmed when the King whines at the warden commander, tugging gently on Akaashi's sleeve. "Noooo, no, you should love life! Come complain about it to me for a while, and let these kiddos sort themselves out, it'll be fine."

Akaashi glances across the others, and Hinata watches as his eyes pass over the two angry men nearly snarling at each other, and then come to meet Hinata's own eyes with a look of… fear? Nervousness? Weariness? Hinata can't quite parse it, but it's certainly not the King's vivid energy. "King Bokuto, I'm not sure that will work this ti-"

"C'mon Warden Commander," King Bokuto simply says, tugging at Akaashi's sleeve even harder and leading him away into the large tent, hardly giving him enough time to direct the mage to take care of Hinata and Natsu.

Hinata just stands there for a moment, watching the flaps of the large golden tent settle back down after Akaashi disappeared through them. He feels kind of detached, but shakes himself back to reality quickly enough. A quick glance down at Natsu shows him that the entire situation has been overwhelming for the little girl, and he bends down to carefully wipe the tears from her face. With what he hopes is a reassuring smile, he gently rubs her arm, trying to convey that they'll be alright, even if it is really different here. He's all that Natsu has left, and he's determined to be there for her as best as he can. Even if he doesn't really know how.

"Come on, I'll show you where the wardens are set up."

Hinata jumps at the voice, but stands back up, looking over to see the angry-eyebrows mage gruffly jerking his head off to the left of the war camp. "Name's Kageyama," he says, his gaze flitting to Natsu for the barest moment before walking forward, not even looking back to see if they're following.

"Hinata," Hinata offers quickly, "and this is Natsu." Kageyama nods once, and doesn't stop walking until they reach a secondary fire, not quite as large as the one in the center of camp, where there are a few others milling around in that same blue-patterned tunic. Must be a warden thing, Hinata muses. It doesn't seem like a bad color.

There's the sound of mabari barking nearby, and Natsu perks up for the first time that day, looking around for the source of the sound. When she spots a nearby pen that holds at least twenty of the hounds, her eyes brighten up, and Hinata can't help but smile a bit. They'll be alright.

 

…

The day moves by at a quick pace, though nothing much happens. Hinata has spent most of the time since they'd gotten there encouraging Natsu to approach the kennel master, to ask if she could spend some time with one of the dogs. He'd finally succeeded in convincing her to go up, and she was happily sitting with one of the younger mabari, stroking its fur and looking calm for the first time in days. Hinata is next to her when he looks up and sees Akaashi finally emerge from the king's tent, looking much more energized than he had when he'd entered.

That was funny, Hinata thought. Usually when his dad had been in political meetings for hours on end, it exhausted him, rather than filling him with energy. But then again, those political meetings had always been boring, and never with someone quite like King Bokuto, he supposes.

Hinata turns to let Natsu know he'll be right back, and finds her curled against the dog's side, snoozing lightly. He decides to let her be – after all, this is likely the first solid sleep she's had since the attack. The dog looks up when he leans over to gently pat Natsu's shoulder, and gives a gentle thump of its tail until he pats the mabari, too. Thankful that the hound seems to know better than to move and wake Natsu up, Hinata steels his resolve and gets up, walking towards the warden's fire pit. It had looked like that was where Akaashi was heading, and he wants to talk with the warden commander.

"Uhm, Commander Akaashi?" He calls lightly, as he walks towards the fire, which had since been lit. "Uh… got a minute?"

"Sure," Akaashi says, turning from where he had been holding his hands out towards the flames for warmth. "And please, just call me Akaashi. It's not like we haven't been through enough," he lightly jokes.

"Ah, alright… A-Akaashi." Hinata tests the name out, alone, on his tongue, but it feels weird. There's a part of him that's distinctly aware that he's talking to his hero, but it's lost a lot of its luster after having traveled with him, smelly, from the burned remains of his home. Which got him thinking about why he approached Akaashi in the first place. "I've been thinking," he starts but then stops, trailing off, unsure of what to say. How does anybody go about asking to join their childhood hero?

Akaashi simply offers him a gentle smile, and sits down on a nearby log, patting the spot beside him. Hinata gratefully accepts, and sits down as well. "I'm not really sure how to say this, but… I think I want to become a grey warden," he finally says resolutely, looking up at Akaashi and meeting his eyes. "That is, if you'll have me," he adds, wavering, his gaze dropping back down to where he's twisting his hands nervously in his lap.

Akaashi hums for a moment, but doesn't immediately say anything. He looks over into the fire, and seems to be seeing something more than just the flames. But when Hinata follows his gaze, he doesn't see anything but a nice source of heat.

"What makes you ask?" he finally asks, looking back at Hinata, who's still watching him. "Why now?"

"Well… spending the day here, in the war camp… I'm not stupid, you know, I pick things up," Hinata says, leaning back on his arms. "It sounds like a new blight's coming upon us, the darkspawn reappearing, and I can't just… sit here. I can fight – you know I can," he adds defensively, to which Akaashi nods in acknowledgement, "and it's not like I've got much to return to, even if I wanted to," he adds, mumbling as he looks down at his hands. After all, Hinata had never really wanted to be the Cousland heir – it had never felt quite right, but it was what had been expected of him, and he hadn't wanted to disappoint his parents. Now there wasn't even the question of an estate to return to, and if anyone were to carry on the Cousland name, it was probably going to be Natsu, anyways. Which only made him think once more about how he doesn't even know how to protect her. Maybe if he were a grey warden, he'd be able to do what he couldn't do for his parents. Maybe, if he were a grey warden, he could be a little less useless. Maybe…

"Just because a Blight's coming doesn't mean it's got to be you who holds it back," Akaashi says, not unkindly. "It's not like the tales you hear of as a kid, the bedtime stories you get told. It's rough, and hard, and there's a high likelihood that you'll _die_ an early death."

Hinata glances over towards where Natsu is curled up next to the hound, still gently dozing, her head resting on the mabari's chest and rising with each breath it took. He takes a moment to decide what he's going to say, before turning back to Akaashi, firm in his decision. There's fire in his eyes as he explains, "that's why I've got to do it. Natsu won't be safe otherwise. And I'm going to do everything – _everything_ – within my power to help keep what little is left of my family safe. And if that means putting my own life in danger to help protect those I care about, then so be it."

Akaashi is quiet throughout his little speech, and huffs a little laugh out through his nose now that Hinata has finished. "You certainly are like your mother," he says, smiling gently at the young man in front of him. "When I first heard Teyrn Cousland had a son, I was curious what kind of fighter he might be. But when I expressed interest in you, he simply told me your mother would have my head before she let her son join the wardens."

Hinata had no idea that Akaashi had asked about him, nor that his father had considered it… let alone that his mother had been so vehemently against it. It made sense, though – his mother's reaction, at least. The grey wardens might have been known for grand feats of bravery and heroism, but there weren't exactly stories of what happened to them _after_ that. There was a reason you never heard of a grey warden retiring from old age.

"Alright," Akaashi agrees, slapping his hands to his knees. "We'd be glad to have you, Hinata Cousland."

"Thanks." Hinata nods, excusing himself before getting up to return to his little sister.

He's idly carding his hand through Natsu's hair when he overhears snippets of what looked like a heated conversation between Akaashi and Kageyama later that night. They stood at the far end of the fire, and Kageyama looked angry about something.

"Do you _really_ think you should let him try the Joining?"

"The boy can fight, and it's up to him. We're not exactly in a position to turn wardens down at the moment."

"No, we aren't, but have you seen him? He's small, and he's got a little sister to care for! Are you really going to let him follow you to his death?"

"Just like you, he has his own reasons for doing so. And just like you, I'm _not_ going to override his decision."

Hinata falls asleep before he can hear anything more.

 

…

The next day, Kageyama tells Hinata to come meet with him and the other warden initiates. He learns that the blond templar's name is Tsukishima, and he's looking to become a grey warden too. There's two others, who introduce themselves as Hanamaki and Matsukawa.

"Call me Mattsun," Matsukawa offers as they all introduce themselves, and Hanamaki shoots Hinata a friendly smile.

"Hinata," he says in response, nodding to them both, and wondering if it was a rule that all grey wardens had to be stupidly tall, or if he just got lucky.

"Alright," Kageyama calls them to order, "What you'll be doing is going into the Korcari Wilds. There's some old ruins a bit northwest from here, they're marked from the map. There's some old warden treaties in them, and we'll need you to collect them. While in there, you'll likely run into some darkspawn – Hurlocks, probably. They're not that smart, so they shouldn't pose too much of a problem, but you'll need to collect a flask of their blood, each of you. Be careful not to get it into your mouth," he warns, looking directly at Tsukishima with a stern look, "it carries the taint and if it doesn't kill you, we'll have to, before you turn into a ghoul."

Hinata swallows anxiously at the warning, but Tsukishima only scoffs. "As if I was planning on letting any of that nasty shit get in my mouth," he says, rolling his eyes. Kageyama looks like he knows something the others don't, and there's a scary looking smirk on his face, but it's gone before Tsukishima looks at him again. Hinata can't help but worry about what might happen, out in the Wilds.

"Aren't you coming with us?" he asks, looking up at Kageyama and wondering if he'd imagined the terrifying smirk. True, with Kageyama and Tsukishima in any kind of proximity, tensions run high, but Kageyama has at least been a warden for longer than any of them, he must have fought darkspawn before – Hinata would feel much better if it was more than just the four of them.

"No, I have other business to attend to," Kageyama says shortly, ignoring Tsukishima's huff of 'sure he does,' and passing an empty flask to each of them. "Remember: the treaties, and the darkspawn blood. Then get out. No sense staying in the Wilds longer than you need to."

As they venture into the Wilds, Hinata could swear he hears Tsukishima mutter something about being certain Kageyama more than knows his way around the marsh, what with their history of housing apostates. Hinata's already decided he doesn't like Tsukishima.

Shortly after entering the Wilds, Hinata spots a little white flower, with a deep red center, growing on a mossy log. When he bends down to pick it, Tsukishima barks at him, asking him what he thinks he's doing.

"It's an herb," Hinata explains, glaring at Tsukishima as he places the flower in his pack, "it's used to make a healing poultice for mabari. The kennel master mentioned some of the hounds have been falling sick." It had actually been Natsu who had told him, but he didn't see the need to mention that. Hinata can already tell that Tsukishima doesn't like him, and he doesn't want to give the Templar an excuse to make fun of him.

"Yeah, well keep on your toes – the darkspawn aren't exactly going to announce their entry," Tsukishima gripes, leading them further into the Wilds, following the path marked on their map.

They barely get around the next bend before they run into their first darkspawn – Hurlocks, Hinata recalls Kageyama calling them. They're so much bigger than he expected… each one is easily the size of Tsukishima. There are only five of them, and they don't notice the intruders right away, which allows Hinata and the others to attack first. Tsukishima leads the charge, raging directly into the group, knocking the first Hurlock aside with his shield like it is nothing but a rag doll. Mattsun follows quickly, slicing into the side of the nearest darkspawn with his sword, and Hanamaki sets himself up just behind a ridge, shooting an arrow expertly into the eye of another. Hinata quickly runs along the side of the clearing, just out of sight, and jumps on the back of a Hurlock just before it can attack Tsukishima from behind.

Tsukishima fells the darkspawn in front of him just as Hinata runs his blade across the throat of the Hurlock he'd jumped on. Both go down easily, and before Tsukishima can even say thanks, Hanamaki has shot the final Hurlock in the throat, and Mattsun finishes it off with an expert slice, decapitating it.

"Remember, don't ingest the blood," Mattsun says, breathing heavily, as Tsukishima wipes some blood off of his face with a sleeve. Hinata stands up, stomach turning at the sight of so much of that black, congealed blood. It's the same as the blood of the rats from the larder, he finds himself thinking, before being jolted back into reality by a hand clapping against his back.

"Thanks," Tsukishima says, nodding at him. Hinata nods back, albeit much more shakily than the Templar.

"Well, they're certainly ugly enough," Hanamaki comments as he walks up, just as Mattsun has finished collecting some blood, and Hinata and Tsukishima have searched the bodies. Nothing of interest, sadly, but Hinata wasn't really looking forward to finding anything that was covered in darkspawn blood.

"We should move on," he finds himself saying, glancing around to see if there's any more lurking monsters with skull-like faces. "There could be more around, and we've still got to reach those ruins."

"Creepy looking things," Mattsun shudders, pocketing the flask as they walk on. "Nasty clouded over eyes and all," he adds with a shudder.

"All the better to aim at," Hanamaki winks, and Mattsun sticks his tongue out at him as they walk deeper into the marsh.

They run into three more hurlocks soon enough, but make quick work of them. "You're really handy with that bow," Hinata comments, and Hanamaki grins in thanks.

"It was my granddad's – bit old and rickety, but gets the job done," he jokes, sliding it up onto his shoulder by the string. From what Hinata can tell, it's in tiptop shape, and he personally doesn't think he could manage to string an arrow on the great thing. It's nearly as tall as he is.

"Hold up… is that another body?" Mattsun asks, and they shift to move a little faster when they see it is, in fact, a human.

Tsukishima runs ahead of them as soon as he recognizes the Templar armor, and pulls the heavy helmet off with haste. He doesn't say anything, but quietly searches the body with reverence while Mattsun helps Hanamaki collect a few more flasks of darkspawn blood. Hinata carefully approaches Tsukishima, but he doesn't know what to say, awkwardly hovering around the edge of Tsukishima's personal space.

"Ser Kurokawa," Tsukishima says in answer to Hinata's unasked question. "He was a knight of Arl Ukai's. He was supposed to have left yesterday." He closes the knight's eyes and bows his head in a silent prayer.

Hinata still doesn't know what to say, but he hadn't expected to see this kind of respect from Tsukishima. He backs away, letting Tsukishima have his moment of silence, before he gets up and they move on.

They reach the ruins almost immediately after, and cautiously enter the enclosed space.

"I don't have a good feeling about this," Hinata mumbles, eyes darting around all the dark corners of crumbled stone surrounding them, each of them moving in a tightly clustered circle.

"Neither do I…" Hanamaki responds, and they jump when hurlocks swarm in from what seems like every angle.

There have to be at least eight – no, ten? Hinata can't keep count as he backs up against Tsukishima.

"There's too many to charge, they're too spread out," he says, raising his shield and sword anyways.

"I can only pick off so many, guys," Hanamaki says, already loosing arrow after arrow as the darkspawn begin to charge them from all sides.

Mattsun seems frozen in fear, and Tsukishima can't seem to decide the best course of action, and right as Hinata leaps forward with a battle cry in an attempt to at least break the circle, a bright flash of light blinds them all.

It takes a few minutes – Maker, possibly more, Hinata can't be sure – for them to come to, but when they do, it's to a killer headache and a circle of felled darkspawn around them.

"What was that…?" Tsukishima groans as he slowly sits up, and Hinata can't even begin to hazard a guess.

"Whatever it was, we should be grateful. We were about to be toast. Extra crispy," Hanamaki comments, blinking against the harsh sunlight beating down upon them.

"There!" Mattsun shouts as he sees the chest, and rushes forward, only to find it cleaved in two and the scrolls missing. "Didn't Kageyama say this was enchanted? Shouldn't they be here?"

"Doesn't look like this is fresh, either," Hinata says, joining Mattsun in front of the chest and looking at the growth that's already started to reclaim the dry wood. "I wonder who did it…?"

"That would be me," a voice sounds from above, and they all jump, raising their weapons in front of themselves once more.

"Oh please," the voice says, as a man steps from around the corner of a section of fallen stairs, "Those hardly did you any good a minute ago."

Tsukishima looks like he's seething, and none of them lower their weapons. Hinata calls out to the man, asking what they were all wondering. "That flash just now, was that you? Who are you? Where are the warden treaties?"

"Me? I'm Yahaba," the man drawls, looking immensely bored with the situation as he surveys the little group of warden initiates. He runs a hand through his hair, pulling the soft brown bangs out of his face with a gentle flip. "And yes, I startled those darkspawn. Nasty little creatures, mother really hates it when they intrude into her territory," he says, his face crinkling in disgust, before turning his attention back to Hinata with a spark of interest. "But you… you want those dusty old scrolls? If I give them to you, will you leave immediately?"

Hinata glances around to survey his companions, and while Tsukishima is bristling with mistrust, and Hinata doesn't exactly trust this Yahaba either, he nods when he looks back at the man.

"Good. You may be less disgusting, but I don't like strangers in the wilds any more than mother does. Here," he says, throwing a bundle of scrolls down, "your precious treaties. Now get out."

As Hinata darts forward to pick up the scrolls, Yahaba disappears behind the collapsed stairs again, and when Tsukishima rushes forward to apprehend him, he freezes around the corner.

"What's wrong?" Hinata asks after he's stowed the scrolls in his pack, and sees Tsukishima just…. Standing there, still.

"There's no sign of him," Tsukishima says, dazed.

"Well let's get out of here – this place gives me the creeps, and we've got what we came for," Mattsun says with a shudder, looking around them skittishly.

"Do you think that was the Witch of the Wilds?" Hanamaki whispers as they make their way back to camp, surprisingly without incident.

 

…

Once they return to the war camp, Hinata finds an excuse to slip away from the others. He nods acknowledgement when Mattsun shouts a reminder about meeting back up with the wardens that night, then quickly ducks off to the side, heading towards where the mages are set up. He doesn't want Natsu to be startled, seeing him like this – sure, they're in a war camp, but he doesn't think it would be reassuring to see your older brother with black sludge all over him. He smiles at one of the younger healers, and finds a small bucket of water quickly enough.

Dipping the edge of his sleeve into the water, he uses it to scrub at his hands and face while he thinks about how he just completed his first bona fide quest. It should count as a quest, right? He wipes his sleeve across his forehead, grimacing at the dark streak it leaves behind on the fabric. He'd killed his first darkspawn! Just like all the stories he'd heard as a kid.

Somehow he'd thought it would be more… satisfying? Definitely less disgusting. He isn't sure why he hadn't been expecting the level of grossness, though. The darkspawn aren't known for being hygienic or anything like that- they carry corruption and the taint for a reason, after all!

After he cleans himself off, as much as he can anyways, he heads back over to where the kennel master is, figuring that Natsu likely wouldn't stray far from the hounds. An excited call tells him he guessed right.

"Shou!" Natsu sprints up to him, a smaller mabari at her side. Hinata thinks it's the same one from yesterday, the one she'd been napping with. "You're back! … and you stink," she adds, crinkling her nose in distaste.

Hinata can't help but laugh, and reaches out his cleaner hand to ruffle her hair. "Killing darkspawn _does_ tend to be messy," he says, grinning. He figures it's probably best to leave out the whole 'getting overwhelmed and being saved by some mysterious wilder' part.

Natsu's eyes widen, and for a moment Hinata can't tell if it's in worry or awe, before she grabs his hand and tugs him towards the kennels. "Did you _really_ kill darkspawn?" She asks in disbelief.

"That I did!" Hinata boasts, "but Tsukishima, Hanamaki, and Mattsun helped, too. They were _huge_ , Natsu, you wouldn't believe!" He follows her easily, having wanted to get that herb to the kennel master anyways, "but they were no match for me!"

"Of course they weren't!" Natsu scoffs, "you're a Cousland!" She pauses for a moment, and her grip on Hinata's fingers loosen before she adds, quietly, "I'm glad you're safe though."

Hinata pulls his hand free of hers in order to ruffle her hair again. "So am I," he agrees, wishing he weren't so messy so he wouldn't feel bad about pulling her in for a hug. "But anyways, you said the hounds were getting sick, right? I found some of that herb mother used to use for the dogs at home," he says, digging through his bag to pull it out. "Would you like to give it to the kennel master?" He offers, holding the slightly-smashed plant out to her.

Natsu's face brightens up immediately, and she looks at the mabari next to her as if sharing good news, before turning back to Hinata and nodding vigorously. "Yeah!" She shouts, grabbing the plant and running over to give it to the kennel master.

Hinata grins as he watches her explain the herb, all animated motions and wild, sweeping arms. He gives the kennel master a mock salute when he catches his eye, making a mental note to thank him for being patient and spending time with Natsu. Having a mabari companion – even if it was bound to be only temporary – seems to really be helping her settle in.

With a quick wave at Natsu, Hinata turns back around to wander through the camp. He hasn't really had a chance to explore since they'd arrived, and he doesn't have to meet back up with the other initiates until later that evening.

He finds himself back in the medical quarters, where there are empty cots lying about. One or two held people who looked like they were either sleeping off a bad hangover, or had eaten something poisonous, Hinata guesses by their pained faces or curled up positions. Nothing too awful, though.

He jumps when he hears a loud groan from behind him, and quickly glances around for the source.

"I'm so hungry….."

There's a whole row of portable prison cages, tall, cylindrical things, with a scattering of some kind of rough hay at the bottom of them, but only one of them has anyone inside. It's a man, probably only a few years older than Hinata himself, and beside how his hair insists on defying gravity, tapering up to a single point, he looks like he could've been picked out of any of the soldiers running around here.

"Are you… alright?" Hinata asks awkwardly, uncertain of what to say to someone locked in a cage.

"I'm so hungry," the man repeats, his tone a touch whinier than before as he leans his head against the bars of his cage, his long bangs falling into his eyes. "I've been locked up since they found me wandering around last night, and the stingy guard hasn't given me anything to eat," he says, frowning.

"Why were you wandering around last night?" Hinata asks, his brow furrowing in confusion. Except for those who were on watch, and expected to be up and about, most of the soldiers seemed to try to sleep as soon as they could. One of the things Hinata noticed was that the war camp seems to start the day rather early – and once the camp is full of the noises and the bustle of people in armor clanking about, it isn't exactly easy to continue sleeping. He knows – he'd tried. It hadn't really worked.

"Mm… doesn't matter," the man says, shrugging lazily, but won't meet Hinata's eyes. "Who are you, anyways? You seem… young."

"So do you," Hinata shoots right back, glowering slightly at the other man. "I'm Hinata, I'm here with Warden Commander Akaashi. Who are _you_?"

"Ugh, more wardens," the prisoner huffs, before caving in when his stomach growls loudly. "Name's Kindaichi. If you get me something to eat, and drink, I could make it worth your while," he offers, finally meeting Hinata's gaze.

"…maybe," Hinata hedges, making sure to stand out of Kindaichi's reach. Father always warned that the best pickpockets were the ones you least suspected. But Hinata does have a bit of leftover bread stashed in his bag, and he knows easily enough where to get water, so he figures it can't hurt to ask about the terms of the deal. "What did you have in mind?"

Kindaichi casts his gaze around, as if looking out for any passersby, before lowering his voice to a whisper. Hinata has to lean in to hear him properly.

"Do you see that mage over there by that chest?" He jerks his head over towards the where the medical portion of the mages' camp gives way to the busier section of tents. Hinata glances over and spots a mage in what he's starting to recognize are the usual robes, with bangs that fall into his eyes and part just enough to show what looks like sun of some kind branded onto his forehead. It reminds Hinata vaguely of the chantry's symbol. He turns back to Kindaichi, nodding.

"Well, that chest next to him? He's always standing there, guarding it. I was curious about what was in it, so I snuck over to check it out when he was away, but it was locked. That only made me more curious about the contents."

Hinata understands the sentiment – even just having it pointed out to him, he's already wondering what could be inside the chest. Just as he's starting to wonder if the lock is too complex to pick, Kindaichi continues speaking.

"So last night, I got the mage who carried the key drunk, and snuck the key off of him. I was walking back to my tent when I got caught, and they assumed I was deserting, so I got locked up in here."

Hinata looks back at Kindaichi, tilting his head in confusion. "They didn't take the key?"

Kindaichi shakes his head, a small smirk on his face. "I swallowed it before they realized I had it. It's since…," he glances down, coughs, and returns his gaze to Hinata, "come back into my possession, let's say. You get me something to eat and drink, and I'll give you the key," he offers, eyebrows raised in silent question.

Hinata's face must openly reflect his disgust at knowing just _where_ the key had been, but he can't help but admit he's curious about what's in the chest now. "Alright," he says, agreeing, "I'll get you something, and you'll give me the key."

It only takes him a few moments to go and fetch some of the water from the bucket he'd used earlier, and he returns with an offering of slightly-stale bread and a generous water skin. Kindaichi whines asking if "that's it," but accepts the proffered meal and hands the key to Hinata without too much fuss.

Hinata's carefully holding the key with the edge of his already-gross sleeve, and staring curiously at the branded mage next to the chest, when he's startled _again_.

"Don't bother. The Tranquil stands guard over it all day. At best you'd have to wait 'til nightfall."

Hinata clutches his chest in surprise, and glares at Tsukishima, who stands easily beside him. It should _not_ be that easy to sneak around in that much armor. He finds himself deeply unsettled by the amount of times he's been startled already today, but refuses to let it show, and instead addresses what Tsukishima said. "Tranquil?"

"Yeah, Tranquil." Tsukishima looks over at Hinata, and rolls his eyes at the clear look of confusion. "Don't even know what the rite of tranquility is, how stupid can you get?"

"Hey!" Hinata protests, but Tsukishima just keeps talking.

"The Rite of Tranquility cuts off a mage's connection to the fade for their own good, keeps them from being possessed." When Hinata's expression doesn't change, Tsukishima sighs and speaks loudly, slowly, as if it was his _words_ that were the problem. "It basically severs all emotion from a mage. It's all for the best. Now come on, the Warden Commander is waiting for us over by the ruined hall."

Hinata can't find it in himself to agree – in fact, he finds his gaze sticking on the tranquil mage's face as he slowly follows Tsukishima – but he doesn't say anything about it at the moment. Personally, though, he can't help but feel that there's something deeply _wrong_ with the Rite of Tranquility, severing a person from their emotions, whether it's 'for their own good' or not. Emotions are a natural part of, well, being!

When Hinata rounds the corner after Tsukishima, he finds he's the last to arrive, and that Hanamaki, Mattsun, Kageyama and Akaashi are all already waiting for them. He quickly scurries into place, standing with the other initiates, and faces the two wardens in front of them.

"You're all here because you want to become Grey Wardens," Akaashi begins, speaking in a firm, clear voice that makes Hinata want to stand up straighter. "This is not a decision to be taken lightly." He pauses a moment, looking at each of them in turn.

"You've all proved yourselves, not only retrieving the treaties, but also collecting some darkspawn blood," he continues, "and we know that each of you are adept fighters. But not everyone survives being a grey warden – in fact, it often leads to an early death." Once again, Akaashi pauses. "If you want to back out, now is the time to do so."

The offer stands, but no one speaks up as Akaashi looks at each of them carefully, meeting their gazes. When he catches Hinata's eye, Hinata stares resolutely back, refusing to give into the urge to shift from foot to foot.

After an appropriately awkward moment of silence, when it was clear no one was going to back out, Akaashi nods, as if he'd never expected anyone to do so in the first place. "Alright. Kageyama?" He asks, and turns to the surly mage. Hinata's gaze flicks over to Kageyama, and sees him pass off an intricate goblet that he hadn't noticed before. Akaashi takes it easily, and looks at the others.

"To become a grey warden, you have to take the taint upon yourself. In here, we have the darkspawn blood you've each collected. Now, who's going to drink first?"

Hinata grimaces at the thought of drinking _blood_ , let alone that nasty, black, darkspawn _sludge_ he'd wiped off his face with his sleeve. And to put that in his _mouth_?

"We're going to drink _what_ now?" Hanamaki asks, eyes wide, and Matsukawa frowns.

"Didn't you tell us _not_ to get it in our mouths??"

Kageyama sighs and rolls his eyes, jumping in before Akaashi can say anything. "Of course it's not _just_ darkspawn blood, you idiots," he says, "we're just not going to rattle off the recipe for Joining-swill entails. The darkspawn blood's the most important bit, anyways."

"Kageyama," Akaashi says in a warning tone, and Kageyama shuts up again. Hinata looks around at the others, feeling his stomach start to clench at the idea. He's starting to understand why Kageyama had smirked after Tsukishima had commented on not getting darkspawn blood in his mouth.

With a dramatic sigh, Tsukishima takes a step forward. " _Fine_ , I'll do it first, if none of the rest of you will go." He takes the goblet from Akaashi, and after a moment of staring down at the contents, he closes his eyes and takes a large gulp.

The others watch him, holding still, as he swallows it down. Except for a bit of a shudder and a grimace, however, nothing seems to happen.

"It's gross, but wasn't that bad," he says simply, pushing the goblet back into Akaashi's hand and glaring at the others, as if challenging them to back out now.

Hanamaki steps up next, and doesn't hesitate as he knocks the contents back. "It's like a badly aged ale," he jokes, grinning at the others before turning back to Akaashi. "Got any more?" he jokes, passing the goblet back to the warden commander. Hinata starts to relax, but before he can even exhale the breath he hadn't realized he was holding, Hanamaki's body is wrenched with a wracking cough.

Hanamaki starts to shake, and he falls to the ground with a sputter, his breathing labored. When he pulls his hand away from his mouth, Hinata sees that it's covered in blood. "Wha…?" Hanamaki starts to ask, before wheezing as another cough fights its way out of his body. His breath sounds like a rattle, and it seems like hardly seconds later that he's on the ground, and he's not moving.

Hinata stands stock still, his eyes wide, and his limbs frozen in place. He's only able to move when a loud thud sounds next to him, and he's startled into looking over, seeing Tsukisima where he had fallen to the ground, out cold. The shock must have caused him to faint – he's pale as a sheet, but still breathing.

"Oh, what a tragedy… the Templar died…," Kageyama says drily, gazing calmly upon the scene as if nothing strange had happened.

"Kageyama, behave," Akaashi scolds, slapping him lightly before passing him the bloody chalice to refill.

Though Hinata feels frozen in place, it seems Mattsun has had the opposite reaction, and is now moving around jerkily, taking steps away from the other three. "No one told me you could die from the Joining… what was that… I… I didn't sign up for this… I'm just going to…. Go…"

But before he can turn and run away properly, however, Akaashi steps forward and simply slides a dagger through his gut cleanly. Hinata's eyes are wide in fear as he stares, watching as Mattsun collapses to the ground, all three of the other initiates now lying in various states of distress around him.

"W… wh… why?" He finally manages to say, his lips trembling.

"There's a reason we gave you an option to back out earlier," Akaashi says with a gentle sigh, though he's wiping the blood off his blade as if he _hadn't_ just killed a terrified man in cold blood.

"There's also a reason we keep it secret," Kageyama says, and Hinata's gaze focuses in on him. He's uncorking a flask, pouring it into the cup. "Not everyone survives the Joining." The last of the liquid pours into the chalice, and Kageyama holds it out to Hinata.

Oh. It's his turn. They had had to refill it. His hands shake slightly as he reaches forward, taking the chalice with both hands. There is no turning back now, he figures, glancing around at the bodies by his feet. Two dead, one alive. Hopefully his odds are better than Hanamaki's.

"Bottoms up," he manages weakly, gagging as he tries to get the liquid down. At least it isn't thick, like he'd feared, but his stomach roils at the mere idea of it.

Almost immediately, he has to turn to the side and bend over, emptying out the entire contents of his stomach onto the dead grass. Well, if it wasn't dead already, it soon would be, Hinata couldn't help but think grimly. He knows he's pale as he looks back at the two wardens, silently asking if that was enough.

Akaashi's frowning, but doesn't look like he's about to say anything, when Kageyama speaks up.

"No, Akaashi, what if the barfing rejected it? He needs enough darkspawn blood in him for it to take. He should at least finish the glass."

Hinata can't help but glare daggers at Kageyama, as just the _thought_ of trying to stomach _more_ of the wretched drink makes him cringe. But Akaashi only sighs in resignation.

"He's right, Hinata," he says, picking the glass up and pouring the final flask, the one originally meant for Mattsun, into the goblet. "You're going to have to drink it – all of it."

Distinctly starting to _regret_ his decision to become a grey warden, even if it _is_ the right one, Hinata reaches forward for the glass. Carefully plugging his nose, he tilts his head back as he swallows the contents down, squeezing his eyes shut and getting it over with as quickly as he can. He doesn't feel great, but he isn't collapsing or coughing up blood, so he supposes he'll survive. He shakily hands the chalice back to Akaashi, who nods at him.

"Good job. Kageyama, bury Hanamaki and Matsukawa," Akaashi directs, immediately back to business. "Hinata, help me get Tsukishima to a cot. He might have a bit of an ache from how he landed, but otherwise he'll be fine."

Hinata helps drag Tsukishima over to the cots he'd found the healers at earlier. Before Akaashi excuses himself, he tells Hinata to get fitted for a proper suit of armor, now that he's a grey warden. Hinata only nods, warily watching him leave.

There's a good reason why Hinata had been slightly afraid of Akaashi before, he thinks. The warden commander can be a terrifying leader.

 

…

It takes a while before Hinata feels up to it, but after his stomach has started to calm down, and it's _clear_ he isn't going to just _keel over and die_ at any moment, he treks over to the armorer's to see if they can outfit him with something that fits. After getting sent off to bathe, because the armorer refuses to work with anyone who "stinks of darkspawn," Hinata returns, a little disgruntled but much cleaner. It takes hours, and trying on almost every suit of armor it seems, before they settle on a light set of hardened leather armor. All of the metal pieces had been far too large, and too heavy for Hinata's slight build, but the leather should do the trick. After all, he needs to be able to move and sneak around – and if he's learned anything from spending a few days in a war camp, it is that armor does _not_ allow for any kind of sneaking around. (Unless you're a certain annoying Templar. Who drives everyone around him nuts.)

He's just finishing up there when he notices that the tranquil mage's chest is currently deserted. After such an awful day, he can't help but sate his own curiosity, and since he doesn't have to worry about getting caught trying to pick it, he hurries over to the chest. Making sure no one's looking, he slides the key into the lock and turns it until he hears the tell-tale _click_. He has no idea what might be in the chest, but he can't imagine anything could be as bad as what he's been through already.

As the lock clicks, he pops open the lid of the chest, peering in curiously. Most of the items in there… he doesn't recognize. There's a few health poultices, and some strange blue, glowing flasks of something, but he's not sure what they are or why they're in the chest. There's also a small pouch of money, and what looks like a fancy cap of some kind. Hinata quick pockets the health poultices, money, and cap, and leaves the rest alone. After the day he's had, he knows better than to mess with stuff he doesn't know.

Hinata has only just locked the chest and stepped away when the tranquil mage walks back up to him, and glances between him and the chest. "Can I help you with something?" he asks in a plain monotone. Up close, Hinata can tell that the mark on his forehead is indeed a sun, with wavy arms, and looks like it's been burnt into his skin. It must have hurt.

"Um…," Hinata hedges, stalling while he tries to figure out what to say. In the end, he decides to offer up the key to the mage. "I think you dropped this?"

"Not me, but another. Thank you for returning it."

Hinata is unnerved at his plain, monotone voice, and how the mage's gaze is so unwavering. "Uh, don't mention it," he mumbles, quickly turning and getting away from the entire area as soon as he can. He _really_ doesn't like the Rite of Tranquility, he decides, and searches out Natsu to give her the cap and purse, and show her his new armor.

 

…

That night, Akaashi gathers them all around the fire. Hinata recognizes Tsukishima and Kageyama, and there are a handful of others he hadn't had a chance to meet, but there aren't many.

"Oh, so the Templar isn't dead after all then? What a shame," Kageyama says blithely, earning another smack and order to behave from Akaashi. Hinata can't say he likes Tsukishima, but can't find the humor in Kageyama's jokes.

Tsukishima narrows his eyes at Kageyama, but doesn't say anything. Not that he needs to – Hinata can feel the rage radiating out from the Templar, and scoots a bit further away with a shiver. Akaashi doesn't let it bother him, and addresses them all.

"Now, everyone here is a grey warden. Our duties are important, and we are soon to enter a heavy battle. We must protect Ferelden from the darkspawn, no matter what: first and foremost, we are protectors. And we must live up to our responsibilities."

From beside him, Hinata hears Tsukishima mutter, "It's not like we're in a blight proper, none of this nonsense actually matters. I'm just here to watch the maleficar." Tsukishima and Kageyama are back to glaring at each other viciously, and Kageyama seems to barely be holding himself back when Akaashi shoots a warning look at them both. Hinata isn't even in the middle of their argument, and he feels the tension intermixed with respect for Akaashi.

Belatedly, he realizes that Tsukishima had passed out before Akaashi had killed Mattsun. He wonders if Tsukishima would be less likely to act out if he knew.

Either way, Hinata feels restless with the tension in the air, and speaks up.

"There may not be a blight, but there's always someone or something to protect others from," he says grimly, thinking of his family and home… and Natsu. Only a day has passed since they'd arrived in camp, and already he feels like he has so much more to protect Natsu from.

Akaashi nods approvingly, before addressing the entire group once more. "Tomorrow, the battle will begin. King Bokuto and I will lead most of you on the front lines. Kageyama, Tsukishima, and Hinata will light the signal fire in the tower of Ishal, to tell Wakatoshi when to come in. We're relying on you," he adds, staring at the three of them seriously. "Kageyama," he adds, looking at him in particular, "I'm trusting you. Be certain you get your job done."

Kageyama nods, and the group disperses soon after that to get some rest.

Most everyone leaves, though Hinata ends up with Tsukishima on one side, and Kageyama on his other, sitting next to the dwindling fire. Just as Hinata feels like he won't be able to survive the tense silence any longer, Natsu wanders up and joins them, squeezing herself in between her brother and Tsukishima.

With absolutely no pretense, she turns to the Templar and asks simply, "Why do you want to become a grey warden?"

Tsukishima snorts, but Hinata can't help but listen carefully, curious as to what his answer is.

"I'm not here to be a grey warden," he starts, causing Hinata's brow to furrow in confusion. "But they have a maleficar and apostate in their midst, and since the warden commander won't allow him to be made tranquil, the very _least_ the Divine could do was assign a Templar to their ranks."

Hinata shifts awkwardly, uncomfortable with how brazenly Tsukishima displays his dislike of others – even their direct seniors. Natsu stubbornly continues to pester the templar, but Hinata ignores it, turning to talk to Kageyama instead. "So… you're a mage?"

"Yup." Sighing at the monosyllable answer, Hinata tries again.

"What's it like, being a mage?"

"Oh, besides demons trying to clamor inside your mind, and Templars insisting you’re the spawn of the archdemon itself, and should basically be mentally sterilized?" Kageyama asks, meeting Hinata's gaze with a steely look, challenging him with nothing but his tone. "Just peachy, thanks."

Kageyama is bristly, but Hinata tries not to let that deter him. After all, he's got to work with him, at least for the near future, so he might as well try to get to know him a bit. "He doesn't seem like that with the other mages," he starts, thoughtful, glancing at Tsukishima for a moment, "how come you're different? Is it because you're a grey warden?"

Kageyama makes a face, and Hinata recognizes it: it's the same face Tsukishima made when he'd called him stupid. Hinata automatically frowns in response.

"Haven't you heard?" Kageyama asks, voice dripping with sarcasm, "I'm a _blood mage_. It's all the rage around camp. I use blood to do my magic. Apparently that freaks people like _him_ ," he says, pointing a thumb rudely in Tsukishima's direction, "out."

Hinata doesn't want to admit it, but the thought of someone using blood to perform magic makes him a bit squeamish. It doesn't help that they'd gone through the Joining just hours earlier, either. That has less to do with ethics and more to do with the state of his stomach, though. Kageyama had handled the blood then, too, he remembers, and he can't help but wonder about how it works.

"Do you use… darkspawn blood? Or your enemies', I guess? I could see if you were using prisoners' blood, or perhaps… servants…? How that could make people uncomfortable," he mumbles, mostly to himself, trying to think it through.

Kageyama, however, seems to take his words as a personal insult. He recoils bodily, and makes a face. "Ugh, disgusting. I would _never_. No, I use my own," he says simply, as if he were talking about sharpening a blade or refilling his water skin. As if it were obvious.

Hinata hums, slightly rocking in place as he considers the answer. Kageyama is fighting under his own power, he supposes, even if it's in a different way. And it's not like he's using someone _else's_ blood to do his magic, so he guesses he can see how that's respectable. He was brought up on horror stories about blood mages, and how dangerous they are, but besides being prickly and rude, Kageyama doesn't seem that bad. Turning back towards Tsukishima, who has been tersely answering all of Natsu's probing questions, he waits for a lull to before interrupting.

"You know," he starts, "you really shouldn't be rude to someone you've only just met. The whole Rite of Tranquility thing seems really messed up, and Kageyama is our senior in the wardens, so you should treat him with a bit more respect."

Tsukishima just looks at him coldly, and disagrees. "He's only been a warden for a couple of years. Hardly all that long."

"It is in a blight," Kageyama cuts in pointedly, glaring at the other.

"Who's to say it's a blight?" Tsukishima challenges, raising an eyebrow, and Hinata can feel the tensions rising once more.

"It isn't fair to treat him as less than a person just because he's some kind of special mage, either," Hinata concludes weakly, and leaves the conversation at that. He stands up, and carefully jostles Natsu from where she'd been dozing lightly, and helps lead her to bed.

After they have curled up together, just about to fall asleep, Natsu's quiet whisper reaches Hinata's ears.

"Shou… are you awake?"

"Mm, I am," he responds, curling his arms securely around Natsu. Even if he hadn't slept in days, he'd always be away for her when she needs him.

"I think Tsukishima's just… sad," she begins, slowly. "So try not to be too mean to him, ok?"

"He's the one being rude, though!" Hinata defends, frowning without even realizing it. He's starting to wonder if it's not just being a warden, or spending time in a war camp, that makes people have angry or tired faces, but rather being forced to spend time with Tsukishima.

Natsu doesn't let that deter her though, and continues quietly, not moving to look back at her brother, but speaking softly into his arms. "He told me he became a Templar because he wanted to find a friend of his," she explains, "someone who was taken away, a long time ago. I think… he just misses his friend. Try to be nice to him, ok?" She asks again, her breath warm on Hinata's arm, and she curls her hand around his as she continues, her voice barely audible, "it's hard when you miss someone."

Hinata feels a lump rise in his throat as he realizes what she means, and works hard to swallow it back down. Slowly, he nods, nuzzling his chin against her hair as she snuggles against him. "Alright, Natsu," he promises quietly. "I'll try to be nice to him."

**Codex Updated: Tsukishima's Story Unlocked.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whenever there's a bold "Codex Unlocked/Updated" message, that means either a new companion fic in this story, or a fresh chapter in one of those companion fics will be the next update! This first one is Tsukishima's story, and I'm hoping to get it up in the next week or two! We'll see how it goes, since finals are creeping up on me. ^^''


	3. The Battle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alternative titles for this chapter: The Battle AKA Everyone You Loves Dies AKA *whispers* my OTP…. Noooo… AKA gentle whimpers  
> I have a lot of feelings about the EVENTS of this chapter, okay? *makes sad little grabby hands at characters* I JUST WANNA PROTECT YOOOOOOU

Hinata is sharpening his daggers before the battle when Kageyama approaches him.

"Hey, I have something for you," he says, not waiting for Hinata to even look up before he thrusts his closed fist in front of Hinata's face.

"Uh," Hinata says, putting his hand underneath Kageyama's to receive whatever the gift was. Kageyama drops a small glass pendent into his hand and sits down heavily. Hinata lifts it up to the light by the little loop on the back, and tilts his head in confusion at the dark red, almost purple, liquid inside of it. "Thanks…?" he says questioningly, not certain what to do with it.

"It's symbolic, from your Joining. It's blood, from the ritual," Kageyama explains, watching Hinata with a bored expression on his face. When Hinata doesn't seem to connect the dots, he continues. "To remind you of those who didn't make it this far."

"…oh….kay…." Hinata says, dragging the sound out and switching it to a word halfway through. "What am I supposed to… _do_ with it?" He asks, trying not to make a face at the pendent. He isn't exactly good with _blood_. Just thinking about the ritual from the day before makes his stomach churn. So he doesn't have to look at it, he focuses his gaze on Kageyama instead.

"You can… I don't know, put it on a string and wear it as a necklace, or something," Kageyama says with a frown and an aggressive shrug of his shoulders. "Don't ask me, I have to go give one to the templar, now."

Kageyama groans as he stands up, and Hinata could swear he sees the frown deepen as he walks over towards where Tsukishima sits, cleaning his armor.

Since he'd passed out after the ritual the day before, the blood and mud had dried on it. Hinata did not envy the heavy metal armor, watching Tsukishima curse as he picks at a particularly stubborn spot on his breastplate.

Curious to see what Tsukishima will do with the pendant, Hinata watches them carefully, attempting to eavesdrop without looking like that's what he's doing.

"Hey. Templar." As always, Kageyama is blunt in his interactions with Tsukishima.

"What do you want, maleficar?" Tsukishima literally spits out, rubbing the small amount of liquid against the stubborn spot on his armor. Hinata pretends to gauge the sharpness of his dagger, holding it up so that he can spy on the others without _looking_ like that's what he's doing. From what he can see, Tsukishima's efforts at cleaning his armor aren't doing any good.

"Here." Kageyama shoves his closed fist in Tsukishima's face, much like he had to Hinata, and finally gets Tsukishima's attention – even if that attention consists of a soul-withering glare. "It's blood from the other initiates. To remember, or whatever."

Kageyama waits only for Tsukishima to take the pendant from his hand before walking away, not looking back once. Tsukishima glances up in his direction, and Hinata attempts to make himself look busy, ducking his head down and looking at the whetstone in his hand.

When he dares to peek over at Tsukishima again, the templar is looking down at the pendant quietly. Hinata wonders what he'll do with it. Does he feel slightly grossed out by the idea of having someone else's blood next to him, like Hinata does? Or maybe Tsukishima doesn't have a weak stomach like Hinata. Tsukishima's also kind of an asshole, so Hinata wonders if he'll just throw it into the fire pit or toss it onto the ground.

As Hinata watches, Tsukishima pulls a cord from beneath his shirt, easily strings the vial onto it, and then slips it back underneath his tunic. With a solemn look on his face, Tsukishima diligently goes back to scrubbing at his armor.

Surprised at how gently and matter-of-fact Tsukishima had handled the pendant, Hinata returns his gaze to the task at hand, thinking about the battle to come. He's certain it will be different from any of the previous battles he's been in up to this point… he's only fought in a marshy forest and a burning-down home, and neither time had felt really _real_.

He's terrified he's somehow going to ruin the entire army's plan of attack when the battle actually commences. So, naturally, he does what he's always done: obsess over it until he makes himself sick, and prepare as much as he can.

Figuring his daggers couldn't be any sharper without breaking, he carefully places them back inside their sheaths.

As he gets up to put the sharpening stone back in his pack, thinking he might go and see about picking up some materials to craft into poisons and explosives, the pendant falls off of his lap to the ground with a quiet _thump_.

He leans down and picks it up, and figures he might as well see about getting some cord to string it around his neck like Tsukishima. Or maybe he can wrap the cord around something… less close to his own pulse, like one of his sheaths or tie it to the edge of his belt.

Tsukishima might be fine wearing it as a necklace, but Hinata doesn't think he will ever feel that comfortable with someone else's blood that close to his skin.

As he wanders over to the armorer to ask if he had any crafting materials, he idly wonders why he's never seen Kageyama with a similar pendant.

 

…

"Now, if anything goes wrong, you're to find a safe place, lie in stealth, and stab anyone who threatens you, got it?" Hinata stares down at his little sister earnestly, his hands resting on her shoulders to help convey the importance of this message. He knows that nothing _should_ go wrong – or at least, it won't according to King Bokuto – but it is, after all, a war, and a Cousland knows to be prepared for _anything_. He absently checks to be sure his pouch of various poisons and explosives is still hanging securely from his belt as Natsu replies.

"I've got my dagger right here," Natsu assures him, motioning to her own sheath, "and I'll be waiting for you with the healers back at camp."

"And if you _do_ have to fight any darkspawn, don't-"

"Get their blood anywhere near my face or mouth, I know, I know," Natsu interrupts, shaking her head slightly. Hinata had probably told her that exact direction more than five times in the last ten minutes. He almost thinks she is more confident than King Bokuto, but he can hear a slight waver in her voice. "It'll be alright, Shou. I'll be alright."

"I know I'm just… worried," Hinata says, gnawing at his lip and looking down at her. Natsu is still so _little_ … not that he's much bigger, of course, but the point still stands. She's only _ten_. How can she be so comfortable about her only remaining family heading into a battlefield?

"Hey," Natsu says softly, headbutting Hinata's chest gently. "I survived getting here, too. And I've watched dad go off to battle bunches of times. He always came back alive, so…" Her voice hitches, and she shoves her face more firmly into his shirt, and Hinata tries not to let his heart stutter as he can feel wet spots soaking into his tunic. " _You_ just concentrate on getting out of this alive, yourself, alright?"

"Yeah," Hinata breathes, wrapping his arms tight around her and wishing he never had to let go. "I'm lighting the signal fire with Tsukishima and Kageyama, so as long as they don't kill each other, it should be fine."

Natsu huffs out a little laugh, and slaps his side halfheartedly in reprimand, rubbing her face into his shirt to wipe away the tears.

"And I promise not to die," he amends, foregoing the normal crack at her for making his clothes gross, and feeling Natsu's arms tighten around his waist.

Stepping back, Natsu looks up at him with a watery smile. "Of course you do," she says with a snort, refusing to let her tears overtake her, "you're a Cousland, after all. Stay safe."

Hinata nods, and takes a moment to lean down. "You too," he whispers, kissing her forehead fondly. "You too."

"Hinata! Come on, we've got to get going," Kageyama calls, walking past him with Tsukishima clanking along right behind.

"Coming!" Hinata calls, glancing one last time back at Natsu, uncertain.

"Go kick that signal fire's butt," Natsu forces out with an attempt at a grin, finally stepping away and heading towards the healers' tents.

After taking just the barest moment to watch her leave, Hinata turns around himself, running to catch up with Kageyama and Tsukishima, not at all surprised when he finds them waiting in terse silence.

 

…

At first, everything goes according to plan. Hinata, Kageyama, and Tsukishima head for the Tower of Ishal, having been given the job to light the signal fire to signal Wakatoshi's battalion to move forward.

King Bokuto and his troops, as well as Akaashi and the few other grey wardens, lead the charge with the archers and an entire pack of mabari.

After having heard the battle plan, as glorious as it sounds, Hinata doesn't exactly envy them: they are going to use fire arrows. Hinata doesn't know how he feels about flaming darkspawn. It sounds like it'd be quite the unpleasant experience, and he doesn't put it past the darkspawn to just keep coming, even while on fire. _Especially_ while on fire.

He shudders a bit at the thought.

Kageyama is fussing over how he should be out there, with Akaashi, instead of "babysitting these two nuglets," for the tenth time, when they reach the entrance to the courtyard of the tower of Ishal. It's one of the few areas that Hinata hadn't been able to explore yet, and he's curious about the new area for about ten seconds before all shit breaks loose.

Hinata only has enough time to notice a sudden shift in Kageyama's demeanor when the first genlocks appear.

There are three genlocks in their immediate vicinity, and by the time Hinata pulls out his daggers and stabs the nearest one, there are more approaching.

"It looks like they're coming from… _within_ the tower?!" Tsukishima's disbelief is as strong as Hinata's, but neither has time to think about it now.

Kageyama swings his staff around from his back, and works on casting some kind of spell, probably, Hinata doesn't know; he's too busy sneaking from target to target, slashing tendons and slicing muscles wherever he can, trying to at least slow down as many of the enemy as possible.

Tsukishima curses, too close to get a good angle on the archers, and is instead forced to use his bow as a club to smack at the nearest genlock's head instead.

Hinata flits between the genlocks, stealthily sliding his daggers between plates of armor with a speed he hadn't known he was capable of. Kageyama has shifted from whatever he was doing before, and is now poking out from behind a wooden lookout tower, sending carefully aimed blasts at the archers, picking them off one by one.

Just as Hinata thinks they're going to beat back the darkspawn with ease, he hears a deafening roar from behind him that makes his skin crawl. Moments later, it seems like everything in front of him has sped up, and he rushes to block the axe that comes hurtling towards his face.

"I _JUST_ CAST AN AREA SPELL, ALL MY HARD WORK IS GONE NOW, WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?!" Kageyama yells angrily, ducking behind the lookout tower just in time to miss an arrow to the shoulder.

"THAT'S A HURLOCK COMMANDER, I WAS DISRUPTING HIS CALL," Tsukishima shouts back with as much vehemence, stringing up an arrow and taking out the last archer that Kageyama hadn't picked off yet. "EXCUSE ME FOR NOT BEING USED TO FIGHTING _WITH_ MAGES!"

"CAN YOU MAYBE _FOCUS_ ON THE BATTLE AT HAND, GUYS?" Hinata shouts back, holding the axe off with one hand and slamming his dagger into the genlock's gut with the other. He slices up and to the side, trying to ignore the heat of fresh (if anything out of a darkspawn can be considered "fresh") blood spilling over his hand.

Before the genlock can fall down on him, he ducks and rolls to the right, turning around as he lands in a crouch.

Breathing heavily, he takes in the scene in front of him. There are five genlock bodies scattered between him and Tsukishima. A little further up, just past the lookout tower, three hurlocks lay fallen, bows and arrows spilling out next to their bodies. A fourth hurlock, that looks like it has a nicer set of blood-encrusted armor, has an arrow sticking out of his left eye socket. It's a pretty impressive shot.

It dawns on Hinata that the bow Tsukishima carries around underneath his shield isn't just for show.

Tsukishima and Hinata are both splattered with blood, but beside some smudges, Kageyama looks almost exactly like he had when they left the camp.

Hinata supposes that's one of the perks of being a mage. No direct combat, per se. Although he's almost _certain_ he saw Kageyama punch a darkspawn when they first appeared. Just. Just straight up sucker-punched it.

He doesn't think anyone would believe him if he said so, though.

"Come on – we've got to light the signal," Kageyama says, and the three of them rush forward, stepping over the bodies and trying to ignore the splash when they run through a pool of blood.

Hinata jumps over the stairs into the tower two at a time in his haste, and reaches the landing first, with Tsukishima right behind. Without warning, three shrieks pop up from the shadows, each emitting a high pitched scream. The sound paralyzes Hinata, and at first he thinks it's just the shock from seeing a towering creature that looks like its limbs are too long for it, all topped off with glistening gauntlets that end in razor sharp edges, but when his eyes dart around in terror, he notices Tsukishima is frozen in much the same manner.

So they're both going to die because they had been reckless fools. Wonderful.

He has only the barest moment to squeeze his eyes shut as the claws come arching through the air at him, bracing himself for horrible, gut-wrenching pain… but it never comes. Peeking out through squinted eyelashes, he's confused when he doesn't see the shriek in front of him anymore.

That confusion only intensifies when he realizes that he's got full control over his movements again, and has reflexively pulled his daggers up in front of himself.

Looking around wildly, Hinata spots all three shrieks in a crumple on the ground between him and Tsukishima, and Tsukishima is just looking impassively back at the place where Kageyama had been. His face looks like it's caught between disgust and gratitude, and Hinata's not sure how to interpret it.

When he follows Tsukishima's gaze, he spots Kageyama a few steps below them, no longer nearly-spotless.

One of his sleeves has been sliced open up to the elbow, and hangs loosely down. Kageyama's left hand is lifted up, and there's a slice across his palm, blood dripping down his arm until it falls off his elbow, staining the hanging sleeve.

Kageyama himself looks a little vicious, and his face honestly frightens Hinata. But it only lasts a second, and then Kageyama's taking the last steps up next to them, asking them if they're alright.

Tsukishima mutters a quiet "thanks," and Hinata nods dumbly, not able to take his eyes off of where Kageyama's hand is freely bleeding.

Of course, he knew Kageyama was a blood mage. Kageyama himself had said so, just the night before. But for some reason, what that entails hadn't really _clicked_ in Hinata's mind until now.

For once, his stomach feels entirely empty at the sight of blood. His entire _body_ feels hollow as he blinks at their senior warden.

"Come on, we've got to get into the tower, at this rate we'll be late at best with that signal," Kageyama says, slapping Hinata on the back and leading the way. "Tsukishima, you'll probably want your sword and shield. I imagine it's only going to get worse from here."

Tsukishima nods minutely, and places his bow back on his back, pulling out his sword and hefting his shield as they make their way forward.

Kageyama's words bounce around in Hinata's head.

_It's only going to get worse from here._

 

…

Once they get into the tower itself, it's clear that Kageyama's suspicions are right: they're battling their way from the front door, through the hallways and around the barricaded doorways.

Tsukishima has put away his bow, and now charges headfirst into the battle, seeking out the largest group of darkspawn in whatever area they're at and barreling directly into them. Hinata rushes in and out of the shadows, working from the outside edges of the darkspawn inward, and darting to Tsukishima or Kageyama's sides whenever they get in a tight spot.

The leather armor had been a good choice. It's very good for sneaking, and plenty mobile for Hinata's speedy kills. Coating his blades in a poisonous salve had also been a good decision.

Kageyama is targeting the archers and more troublesome darkspawn, paralyzing them where he can and shocking them with bolts of lightning where he can't.

The darkspawn seem never-ending, more pouring through from a side room than could _possibly_ be within the tower.

"I'm going to check ahead!" Hinata calls, and catches Kageyama's jerky nod. At this point, Hinata's not sure how much of the blood on him is from darkspawn, and how much of it is from Kageyama himself, but he's covered in a worrying amount of it. He seems to be holding up for the time being, though, as is Tsukishima, but Hinata knows they can't keep this up forever.

He rushes in amongst the darkspawn's ranks, slicing guts and throats and backs where he can along his way. The stench of darkspawn mixed in with the vivid smell of blood is doing a number on his stomach, but he doesn't have time to deal with it – barfing can be handled only _after_ they're done fighting for their lives.

When he finally gets far enough into the other room, letting himself get lost in the pulse of the fighters, he sees it. "Flaming Andraste, that's a big hole," he breathes, looking at the source of their troubles.

There, in the back of the tower, where the stairs to the next level should have been, lays a gaping cave, out of which darkspawn are spilling like they'd been told there were free people to kill and lands to pillage on the other side.

Which, all things considered, there kind of is.

All of the troops are with King Bokuto. And there are only three relatively fresh grey wardens here at the tower.

And no way to reach the signal to even get the help they need. Not if they have to plow through the entire horde of darkspawn.

Sneaking back alongside the stampeding feet of the darkspawn, and slicing ankles as he goes, Hinata returns to find the other two have at least secured the bottleneck that was the ruined doorway.

Hinata steps in and takes Kageyama's place, slashing viciously as he speaks.

"There's underground tunnels, right beneath the stairs. It looks like only one opening," he says, ducking hastily and letting Tsukishima chop the head off of a particularly persistent hurlock, "but I think I can close it. I'm going to need a distraction, though."

He glances back at Kageyama, and sees him downing a red liquid. Probably a health draught, and probably isn't his first, either.

"I can paralyze most of them, if Tsukishima can pick off the ones who resist it with his bow."

Tsukishima just grunts in response, which Hinata takes to be confirmation that he can do that.

"The sooner we can do it, the better," Hinata says, cursing as one of his blades gets caught in a hurlock's armor, and punching it in the face before yanking his dagger back out. "Ready?"

Tsukishima and Kageyama nod firmly, and that's all the signal they need.

Tsukishima yells as he presses his shield against the darkspawn ahead of them, carving a path into the room, and Hinata follows just behind him. Kageyama brings up the rear, shooting blasts of energy out to each side, knocking the crowding darkspawn back.

They make their way further into the room until they're roughly in the center, and Hinata has never been much for the chant but he's sure praying to the Maker that this _works_ , because there's no chance they're escaping this alive otherwise.

Kageyama slices his other palm open, and Hinata feels a blast of cold energy emanate from him as he spreads his hands to the side and shouts.

"NOW, HINATA!"

Hinata runs towards the gaping hole, cursing up a storm with every darkspawn that he shoulders past. This is insane. This is insane and it was his idea.

This is insane and he can't believe he's actually doing this right now.

He skids across the last section of the floor on his knees, pulling out his entire pouch of explosives to place on the floor. He hadn't had time to use them in the battle earlier, and also hadn't thought of them, but now he's glad.

He's glad he had chosen to spend the time before the battle this morning preparing, by sharpening his blades and constructing explosives. For once, his nervous antics had paid off.

And he's glad he didn't have the forethought to use them, because he's not completely certain that this is even going to work.

As he runs back towards the others, he shouts, "TSUKISHIMA!"

Tsukishima hones in on the bag while Kageyama lights his notched arrow. A slight shift, a loosed string, and a bare moment's wait-

**_FWOOSH_ **

The cold from Kageyama's paralysis lifts for a moment, and Hinata feels the wave of heat cascade throughout the room, immediately followed by the thunderous noise of stone collapsing in on top of the darkspawn infested chasm.

From where he fell at the blast, Hinata glances back, seeing a massive pile of broken rock. A laugh bubbles up past his lips in disbelief.

It _worked_.

And not only did it work, it looked like might be possible to climb the rubble to reach the next floor.

Two darkspawn with one stone. Heh.

Kageyama and Tsukishima each grab one of Hinata's hands as they run past him, hauling him to his feet and forcing him to race towards the rubble.

"If we hurry, we might still make it," Tsukishima pants, and Kageyama nods, his gaze firmly locked on the next story up.

They might just make it.

 

…

They scramble through the upper levels of the tower, only running into a few, quickly killed darkspawn. It seems they had concentrated their attack on the lower levels, and had left the broken staircases mostly alone.

Hinata's glad they did.

When they finally reach the final floor, and skid into the last room, they've each added a heavy layer of sweat to those of blood and dirt. They're all panting, and exhausted, when they look up and see it.

It's got to be the ugliest darkspawn they've seen yet.

The biggest, too.

It easily stands three times as tall as Hinata, and its massive skull is topped with huge horns spiraling against each other. Its skin is so dark it almost looks purple, and it has armored spikes welded around its arms.

"What the FUCK is that doing here?!" Hinata shouts in exasperation, without thinking, and it turns around and _roars_ at them.

Maferath's soiled trousers, that is the biggest jaw Hinata has seen yet. And every one of its snaggled, pointed teeth are pointing straight at them.

Tsukishima freezes at the sight, but Kageyama leaps into action.

"It's partially blinded! Hinata, I'll distract it, you attack!"

Kageyama looks like he's about to pass out, but Hinata doesn't have time to think about that. He only hopes that Kageyama is right, and bounds forward, sliding down underneath the monster's legs to come out on the other side.

"Come and get me, you blasted ogre!" Kageyama shouts, and slowly draws its attention away from where Tsukishima stood, stock still. Fat lot of good the templar did.

It turns toward Kageyama, and lowers its head as if preparing to charge. Hinata can't afford to waste any time.

He stabs his blades into the ogre's legs, as high as he can reach, and tears the blades down with as much strength as he can muster.

It roars in outrage, and Hinata feels like his ears are ringing when it stops. He runs to dodge the hand the shoots out, but isn't fast enough, and trips, falling to the ground. As he falls, he can see Tsukishima rushing toward the signal, any noise his armor might make drowned out by the screams of the ogre.

"Kageyama, a little help here!" He says worriedly, seeing that massive hand lurching forward a second time, even faster than before.

"Working on it!" Kageyama shouts in response, and slices a line across the top of his forearm, the blood gushing out and forming a pointed object, shooting at the ogre faster than Hinata can follow.

Not that Hinata could try to follow it, even if he wanted to. He's a _bit_ more concerned about the incoming claw of death.

By rolling quickly, Hinata manages to dodge it, albeit just barely. The ogre shouts as the blood blade slams into its back, and the ground shakes as it stumbles about.

It's hunched over, and probably won't stay like that for long, so Hinata takes the opportunity while it's still there.

He gets a small running start, and jumps up onto the creature's back, throwing himself at its neck and wincing as he hears the telltale skitter of one of his blades flying across the ground. With a startling lurch, Hinata is thrown towards its horns, and he grabs onto one to avoid being thrown to the ground and, likely, his death.

"Would- you- just- DIE ALREADY!?" Hinata shouts, slamming his remaining dagger as far as he can into its neck, pulling it out and stabbing again, and again, as many times as he can manage until the beast falls.

Hinata feels his body start to slip, but he doesn't have the energy to stop it, and flops to the ground with a heavy thud. His chest is heaving, his ears ringing, and he's about a foot away from a dead ogre, but he's _alive_.

Tsukishima helps Hinata get up after a few moments, and Hinata can both feel and hear the comforting sound of the grand signal fire crackling to life. They did it.

"How can you work so easily with someone like _him_?" Tsukishima asks in disbelief, looking between Hinata, Kageyama, and the felled ogre.

Hinata's not sure if he's talking about how smoothly he and Kageyama had just killed an ogre (an ogre!!), or if it's because Kageyama's a blood mage.

Either way, he just grins and says, "We just saved your life AND killed an _ogre_ , your argument is invalid! It's a good thing we're immune to the taint now, too, there's so much darkspawn blood flying around," he mumbles to himself, glancing around to find Kageyama.

Kageyama collapses against the wall, next to one of the tower's windows, in exhaustion. With shaking hands, he reaches for another health draught and curses when there isn't one there.

Hinata leaves Tsukishima to stand, sputtering, and walks over to Kageyama, offering him a draught from his belt that had somehow survived the battle. "Here."

"Thanks," Kageyama says, slumped, and sluggishly reaches forward and downs the entire contents in one go. Hinata had always thought they tasted disgusting, and tries to avoid using them, but Kageyama doesn't seem to mind it at all. All of the shallow flesh wounds Kageyama had scattered up and down his arms and across his hands begin to seal up, one by one ceasing the flow of blood escaping from his body.

He doesn't look all that different when not bleeding, Hinata decides. But then again, none of them probably would. He should probably get used to being covered in battle gore and blood sooner rather than later.

(He doesn't think he'll ever get used to it. He's not sure he wants to.)

"Not that I'm condoning anything, but there's so much darkspawn blood around, it's foolish not to use it and only exhaust yourself instead," Tsukishima says as he approaches, and Kageyama makes a disgusted face.

"And let that _taint_ my magic?! I would _never_!"

"YOU'RE A GREY WARDEN! YOUR OWN BLOOD LITERALLY _HAS_ THE TAINT!" Hinata glances out the window while Tsukishima shouts back in exasperation.

"...guys," Hinata says, quietly at first, and then raising his voice when the other two just continue arguing. "GUYS!"

That finally gets their attention, and they both look over at Hinata in surprise.

"Something's wrong," he says, turning back towards the others. "The reinforcements – Wakatoshi – they're not coming."

They both step up to the window, peering at the battle with matching grim looks on their faces. Their forces are getting overrun completely, and it doesn't look like those remaining, barely holding the darkspawn back, are going to last much longer.

"We should get out th-" Tsukishima begins, but Hinata's mind runs faster than Tsukishima's mouth, and his skin has gone cold at the realization.

"NATSU!"

 

…

Hinata leads the rush back to camp, not once looking behind to see if Kageyama and Tsukishima are keeping up. They had killed most of the darkspawn on their way in, but the few stragglers left don't have much of a chance: Hinata slices through them and moves on in the same motion.

He is a STORM, and nothing is stopping him from getting to his baby sister.

The entire time, his brain is chanting in fear and denial: she can't be dead, she's his only family left, and he's hers, he had promised to survive but _so had she_ , she HAS to be safe, this can't be happening, what was he _thinking_ leaving her in a war camp, he shouldn't have left her but he couldn't have taken her with him–

When they reach the camp itself, it looks like a storm of its own has rolled through. The tents are all either shredded or actively ablaze, and there are bodies littered everywhere. Mages and darkspawn alike are sprawled across the ground, and Hinata doesn't break his stride even when he nearly trips over a cold arm. He rakes his gaze across each of the bodies, looking for a familiar small frame, and a faded and torn dress.

She has to be here. She has to be here. She HAS to be here.

"NATSU!" He wails, abandoning all pretense of trying not to alert any darkspawn nearby, but luckily for him it seems any who had made their way through the camp have since moved on. He doesn't know how many hours the battle took. But if Natsu isn't… but she has to be… but if she isn't…

"Hinata, you're going to alert the dar-" Kageyama tries to calm him down, but Hinata isn't having any of it, and just viciously shushes him when he hears the slightest little sound.

After the battle everywhere else, all throughout the tower, camp itself had been eerily devoid of any sound except the snapping of the wooden poles holding the tents up.

"There," he says as he hears it again, a quiet sob, and shoves Kageyama out of his way in his desperate search. Tsukishima says something about a potential trap, but Hinata doesn't register any of it. His entire being is focused on one thing, and one thing only.

Finding Natsu.

He runs toward what's left of the mages camp, calling out her name once more.

"NATSU! WHERE ARE YOU? NATSU!!"

A little body stumbles out at him from the wreckage, and he barely has time to see that there's another person behind her before she barrels into his legs, knocking him down with the force of it.

"SHOU!" Natsu cries out, muffled from where her sobbing face is pressed into his chest, and her arms are wrapped tightly around as much of him as she can reach.

Hinata's not much better, though, the tears streaming down his face as he hugs her back just as hard.

He doesn't know how long they hold like that, or how long the silence lasts, but when it's finally broken, it's by the quietest of whispers.

"…Tsukki?"

Natsu pulls her face away from Hinata, but doesn't release her death grip on him. "He helped me," she gets out between hiccupping sobs, "when they came. I kept us hidden, and he kept my energy up. There were… so many… I was so afraid… Shou!" She buries her face back into Hinata's chest, and her whole frame shakes as she's wracked with sobs once more.

"It's ok, Natchan, I promised, I promised and I'm here," he whispers, sitting up with her in his lap. When he goes to stand, she shows no signs of budging from his chest, so he simply shifts to pick her up securely, and she wraps her trembling arms around his neck.

"Thanks," he says, finally looking at the man who had helped his little sister survive. He's wearing healer's robes, and his skin is splattered with dark spots, showing up all the more because of his paled face. His wide eyes are locked on something behind Hinata, so he slowly follows the mage's gaze to see Tsukishima standing behind him, with a matching white face and shocked stare.

The silence doesn't last for long, though, because Kageyama steps between them all and snaps.

"Ok, it's great you're all alive, and the main horde might not be here NOW, but it won't take them long so we need to GET OUT OF HERE."

With a jerk, everyone seems to be reminded of the situation, and they all look at Kageyama with questioning looks.

"Where will we go…?" the healer asks quietly, his voice hardly more than a whisper.

"The Wilds. I know the way. Come on." With that, Kageyama turns around and leads them out of the camp, and towards the marshy forest.

…

They walk the rest of the day, putting as much distance between themselves and the ruined camp at Ostagar as they can. Whenever Kageyama senses darkspawn, he signals to them to hide, and the sneak past a few groups of stragglers.

Thankfully most of them are out on the battlefield instead of in the Wilds.

It's a morbid thing to be thankful for.

By the end of the day, they've managed to put at least a few miles behind them, and they're all about to collapse from exhaustion when they stop. They don't have much to set up camp with, and they can't exactly start a fire and give away their location.

It's wet, cold, and generally miserable.

But they're alive.

It turns out that the healer who had helped protect Natsu is Yamaguchi, the friend that Tsukishima had been searching for. Hinata's not in any place to judge, but he'd have thought that a reunion between friends who had lost each other for so many years would have been a bit more… joyous. Even in – maybe because of – the current situation. Instead, the first interaction between the two is when Natsu is introducing them all, and concludes proudly with, "and this is my older brother, Hinata."

Tsukishima quickly appends to her introduction, "quite possibly the loudest rogue I've ever seen."

Yamaguchi reaches out and smacks Tsukishima, almost as if it were a reflex, and Hinata thinks it’s the first time they've touched since they reunited. There's a look of shock in Tsukishima's eyes, his entire face freezing, and Yamaguchi's answering response looks just as bad, with a sharp intake of air and a hand clasping against his mouth, as if he hadn't actually meant to do that.

Hinata had honestly been a bit surprised, too. He hasn't seen anyone yet who interacts with Tsukishima comfortably, let alone who feels confident enough to hit him as easily as that.

The two awkwardly stare at each other, and then at anything _but_ each other, until Kageyama interrupts loudly, saying, "Well, if the rest of you aren't going to sleep, then I'm going to take this opportunity while it lasts." He scrubs an exhausted, and finally _bandaged_ , hand across his face. "Wake me if anything comes too close, and hell if it's darkspawn I'll probably sense them first anyway."

Everyone else just gapes at him, their jaws hanging loosely and the silence deafening. Hinata thinks he can even hear the sound of his eyelids blinking.

A sneer comes across Kageyama's face, and it seems whatever patience he had for the day is gone as he snaps, "I literally perform blood-letting rituals to do my magic, can you blame me if I'm exhausted? I'm traveling with blasted demons, no manners," he grumbles to himself, finding a patch of ground and curling up into a ball to try to conserve warmth.

"You're traveling with a _blood mage_?" Yamaguchi whispers in shock, his eyes wide as he looks over at Tsukishima.

Tsukishima frowns. "It's not ideal, but he saved my life, so I'll let it go for tonight. He's a grey warden, too – surely you heard about him in the camp?"

Hinata can't help but mentally agree with Tsukishima. He feels wary around Kageyama, especially after seeing what blood magic actually _looks_ like in action, but it _had_ been useful. Kageyama saved both of their lives multiple times that day, and seemed to nearly bleed himself dry to do it, too. Hinata would have to ask him why he doesn't just use lyrium potions instead sometime.

But Kageyama's also kiiiiiind of a mabari's ass, so Hinata can't feel _too_ badly for him.

"You want to take first watch? So you can… talk?" Hinata offers, looking up at Tsukishima and Yamaguchi. Tsukishima looks surprised at the heartfelt offer, but nods.

"Great, because I'm exhausted," Hinata confesses, shifting so he can gently release Natsu from off his back. In response to her murmurs and gentle whines, he rubs her back, whispering back. "It's alright, it's alright, Shouyou's here. That's it," he says, curling up next to her as she begins to fall back into a restless sleep, "that's it, I'm here."

Once she'd managed to peel herself away from Hinata's chest, she had walked along with the rest of them. She was still just a kid, though, so she had gotten tired long before they could afford to stop, so Hinata had hefted her into a piggyback carry, and had trekked on without a complaint.

That, combined with the battle, and the long day he'd had? He doesn't think he could _possibly_ be more exhausted, physically, or mentally. He's drained.

He's barely laid down on the ground before he's falling asleep, registering Tsukishima and Yamaguchi's heated whispers as nothing more than noise.

 

…

Natsu wakes up throughout the night, startled from nightmares of what she saw, and Hinata is at a complete and utter loss for how to comfort her. _No one_ should have to see the things she did – let alone a ten year old little girl. In the end, he settles on pulling her tight up against him, and rocking her gently back and forth, humming the same lullaby their mother used to sing to him when he had bad dreams.

He had been brought up a warrior – although even he was never meant for battle, not like this – and even he is having trouble with what he's seen… battling through creatures that look like they are _made_ of nightmares, knowing those are only the lowest of the underlings, fighting for his life and being surrounded by so many bodies he's stopped registering them as such… that is hard enough. But at least he had been trained. At least he can fight back.

Natsu is only ten, and she might have been trained in dueling, but she had never been expected to use it… and to have to sit there, concentrating on keeping herself and Yamaguchi hidden from the darkspawn, able to do nothing but watch as the carnage fell around them… it's a terrible thing.

He has to be strong for Natsu, but it all just hits him at once.

Everything that they had to flee from at home. Having to practically witness his own parents' deaths. Ser Howe's betrayal. Barely managing to escape, and reaching a moment of peace at Ostagar, only to have it shattered. Hinata's lost every role model he ever had, even Akaashi, the embodiment of his dreams.

His rocks turn slightly erratic as silent sobs he can no longer hold back start to escape. He forces himself to at least do it silently, the tears leaking from his eyes. He doesn't notice that Natsu wakes up again until she wraps her arms around him in a tight embrace.

"G- go back to sleep, Natsu. It's… alright. I'm here," he manages, keeping his voice relatively free from wavers.

"I'm here too, Shou," Natsu whispers, nuzzling against him, as if they could be closer than they already are. "I'm here too."

…

**Codex Updated: Yamaguchi's Story Unlocked**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Kageyama doesn't have a Joining pendant at all, because he was the only one AT his Joining. Kageyama is a special goose. That plus, you know… people wouldn't exactly be comfortable around a blood mage who has (what they see as) an "emergency" vial of blood just kinda chillin' around his neck, so they just kinda forego the whole tradition that time.
> 
> If any of you thought I was going to kill off Natsu S H A M E O N Y O U SHE IS MY TINY CHILD AND I LOVE HER TO BITS AND PIECES and also she figures pretty importantly throughout the background of this fic so. Do not worry my friends. The smol is safe. <3
> 
> In other news, it appears I am literally incapable of writing a chapter less than 5k. It's a gift? *shrug* Next up, Yamaguchi's companion fic debut! (I swear not all the chapters will be interspersed with companion fic bits, it's just these first few bc THERE'S SO MANY NEW PEOPLE ahhhh!!)
> 
> 3.20.2016: tiny word choice edits


	4. The Blight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's just stop pretending I'll ever be able to keep on an updating schedule lol. 
> 
> BIG THANKS to Siseja for betain' this chapter! The tense shifting hoRRORS you'd all have to survive if it weren't for my lovely betas.... lol.

Hinata is running.

He doesn't know what's behind him. He hears the pounding of thousands of feet, marching in unison.

_Thump._

_Thump._

_Thump._

Hinata is running. His heart is thumping against his rib cage.

He doesn't know how long he's been running. Something is chasing him. Many somethings. Or is it nothing?

_Ba-thump._

_Ba-thump._

_Ba-thump._

Hinata is running. His feet hit the ground unsteadily, barely carrying him, just as likely to stumble as move forward.

He's doesn't know what makes that deafening beat sounding in his ears. He might be alone, the sound just the rhythm of his heart; he might be surrounded, an army against him.

_Badathump._

_Thump._

_Badathump. Thump._

_BadathumpThump_

_BADATHUMPTHUMP_

Hinata is running. His breath is escaping him in quick, desperate gasps, as if there's a shortage of air.

Something calls out to him. But he is alone. Isn't he?

_BADATHUMPBADATHUMPBADATHUMP_

Hinata is running.

 

…

Hinata's eyes snap open and his hand is gripped around the handle of his dagger before he even processes that he's staring up at the dark night sky, and the only pounding he's hearing is his rapid heartbeat.

He forces himself to breathe evenly, though he doesn't loosen his grip on his dagger. There's something comforting about a weapon in his grip.

Although he realizes there is no immediate threat to his life, he's far too keyed up to get back to sleep, so he glances around their makeshift camp instead.

Natsu is still asleep, right next to him, so close he can see the gentle movement of her (finally) even breathing despite the dark. They couldn't light a fire, for fear of giving their position away.

Hinata shivers, though whether at the thought of their situation or the reminder of the lack of warmth, he's not sure. He carefully shifts himself out of Natsu's grasp, figuring he'll join whoever's up for first watch.

Kageyama's still asleep as Hinata quietly picks his way over toward Tsukishima. Yamaguchi is curled up next to Tsukishima, snuffling in his sleep, and Hinata figures they must have finished whatever conversation they were having before.

He's not really sure how long he managed to sleep, but it feels like it's only been moments since his body finally surrendered to exhaustion.

"Hey," he whispers, not wanting to startle Tsukishima as he sits down next to him.

"Hey," Tsukishima responds back with the slightest glance over at Hinata. "You look like shit."

"Don't look any better yourself," Hinata snarks back, looking over at Yamaguchi and back to Tsukishima. "Have a good talk?"

Tsukishima sighs, and Hinata thinks he must be just as exhausted as the rest of them. It had certainly been a hard day for them all.

Hinata wonders if he's going to respond at all when Tsukishima finally breathes out a word.

"Yeah. We…," he cuts himself off, and looks down at Yamaguchi with an inscrutable look. "Thanks," he finally settles on, looking over at Hinata.

Hinata shrugs, and decides to stop trying to figure out what Tsukishima's face means. It's too hard in the dark, and he's going to give himself a headache. He wonders if, since Tsukishima's been reunited with his friend, the templar will become less insufferable. He kind of doubts it.

They sit in silence for a while, watching over their companions and keeping a wary eye on their dark surroundings. Hinata is trying to keep his mind from trying to remember what his nightmare had been about – there's something nagging at him, as if he's forgotten something important he needs to do, but he doesn't _want_ to know why he woke up with a racing pulse – when Tsukishima speaks up.

"Idiot wanted to try Joining the wardens," Tsukishima sighs, rolling his neck. "Doesn't understand that's a death wish, for someone like him."

"Whuh?" Hinata says, jerked from his thoughts back to the present.

"Yamaguchi," Tsukishima clarifies. "Joining us. I convinced him not to, but… who would want to Join the wardens of their own accord?" He huffs, frustrated. "You're going to die much earlier, you've got to deal with the stupid nightmares, and you have to worry constantly about _darkspawn_."

"Yeah…," Hinata whispers back, feeling like he has to agree. Was that what woke him? His first warden nightmare? Possibly… he doesn't want to dwell on the thought.

He doesn't want to think about dying sooner, either, but that doesn't stop his traitorous mind from contemplating it, and he glances back at Natsu to reassure himself she's still there.

"Yeah, it sucks," he repeats, anxiously shifting his fingertips across the braided hilt of his dagger.

Tsukishima murmurs in agreement, and Hinata finds himself twisting his dagger around in his grip. It feels like something could go wrong at any moment, but that might just be remnants of his nightmare still coursing through his body. Either way, the extra wariness couldn't hurt during watch.

"Hey, why don't you get some sleep? I'll take over," he suggests, looking over to find Tsukishima yawning widely. "I'm not going to be able to sleep any time soon anyways."

"Suit yourself," Tsukishima shrugs, his eyes already heavy with the idea of rest. He lays down next to Yamaguchi, and Hinata looks away to provide them some semblance of privacy.

There's something intimate about the way those two are close, but never-quite-touching, not since Yamaguchi accidentally smacked Tsukishima earlier. But Hinata's not going to pry.

It's not his place, and he's got more important things to do anyway.

 

…

Someone is whispering.

Hinata doesn't recognize the voice, and it's so quiet he can barely hear it, let alone make out any words. It's almost like a quiet hiss, rather than anything reasonable.

It chills him to the bone.

Someone is whispering, and the sound feels as if it is coming from within Hinata himself, as if the whispers are escaping out his ears instead of entering through them. It's a sinister sound, sharp as it pricks its way across Hinata's skin, out through his limbs.

He feels like he should be running from it, but is weighted down by some unknown force.

Someone is whispering, and though he can't make out the words, he knows the message isn't a good one. The sound makes him feel sick, but he can't stop himself from looking for the source. There's something inside his chest that is pulling him forward, but to where he doesn't know.

Someone is whispering, and Hinata desperately doesn't want to know who.

 

…

Hinata jerks back to alertness, his dagger chasing after a hand speedily withdrawn.

"Whoa there, stab happy, just wakin' you up."

Hinata recognizes the rough voice, and as his eyes adjust to the dim lighting, he recognizes Kageyama, a fingertip disappearing between his lips. Had he really…?

He looks down at his dagger, sees the drop of blood on the tip, and hastily looks back at Kageyama. "Oh Maker, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean t-"

"Hey. It's just a little blood, dumbass. Lose more'n this in a good fight," Kageyama shushes, brushing off Hinata's apologies with insults. After a moment, he removes his finger and holds it up to his eye, gazing at it closely. "Just a little nick."

Hinata wants to feel relieved, but he's too busy staring wide-eyed at Kageyama's hand. He hasn't had a chance to get a good look at the blood mage's skin before this, and he can't be certain because of the bad lighting, but it looks as if the man is _covered_ in scar tissue. So many lines overlapping with each other, he feels like if he blinks too fast they'll disappear.

Kageyama notices Hinata looking, and shakes his sleeve back down, clears his throat. "Anyway, you looked like you were having a nightmare. Common for wardens. Thought you might wanna wake up before the worst of it."

Hinata isn't sure whether or not the scars were real, or a trick of his adrenaline-fueled mind. His fingers twitch anxiously over the hilt of his dagger and he looks away, embarrassed. "They get… worse?" He ventures to ask, not sure he wants to know the answer.

What he'd seen so far seems bad enough. He can only imagine what it would be like if the nightmare had continued. Though it _had_ seemed as if it was building up to something even more dreadful…

Kageyama snorts out a quiet laugh. "Just wait 'til you see the archdemon for the first time. Fuckin' terrifying," he says, shaking his head. "But it's alright. They've been worse, since the Blight is nearer, but you get… used to them, I guess."

Hinata looks at Kageyama in disbelief, and wonders what the archdemon might look like. The only thing that comes to mind is a bigger, uglier ogre. He shivers at the thought.

"Why did you even become a grey warden, anyway?" He asks, curious. Kageyama doesn't seem anything like the grey wardens he always heard stories about as a child. He doesn't even look like he's much older than Hinata himself. Did they recruit grey wardens as children? It seems like a terrible idea…

"It's a… long story," Kageyama hedges, leaning over to pick up a broken branch from the ground. "Warden-Commander Akaashi recruited me, though. He is… was… a good guy."

Hinata doesn't say anything, looking on as Kageyama falls silent. He hadn't been trying to bring up touchy subjects. What had been a (relatively, considering the situation they're all in at the moment) light-hearted question had suddenly turned serious in no time flat.

Hinata wonders if, to be part of the "survivors" group, you had to have some kind of awful, sad, life-changing story. He wonders what Yamaguchi's is. He wonders what _Tsukishima's_ is. Maybe Tsukishima wasn't always such an asshole.

…nah.

Hinata squirms a little at the silence, uncomfortable but not really sure what to do. Warden-Commander Akaashi seemed like the hero warden from all the stories. Hinata could picture _him_ riding into battle on a griffon.

But, thinking back on all that had happened in the past forty-eight hours, Hinata supposes the stories didn't really reflect grey warden reality. He's a grey warden now, too. Akaashi had told him it wasn't going to be pretty… and he was right.

"Uhm… what-" Hinata starts, and stops, trying to rearrange his thoughts into a coherent order in his head. "What… was the warden commander like?"

At first, Hinata's not sure he's said the right thing. He's afraid Kageyama is going to just shoot him another glare, or brush him off with a grunt, or pretend he didn't say anything at all.

Considering that they just saw the utter destruction of the King's forces just hours earlier, he's most afraid that Kageyama might cry, or throw a punch. He's not sure which one has a higher likelihood of happening.

To his surprise, Kageyama doesn't do any of that. He just looks out into the trees and starts to talk, low and steady.

"Akaashi… was pretty great. You know, he kept the templars off my back when I first Joined? I wasn't the most popular, bein' a blood mage and all…" He trails off, but Hinata doesn't dare speak up, forcing himself to wait patiently for him to continue.

"Akaashi didn't see me like that, though. He saw me as a person first, and mage second."

 

…

Kageyama is right, the nightmares just keep coming, and they only seem to get worse. Hinata hasn't seen anything he thinks might be the archdemon, but the disturbing whispers seem to get louder.

His nightmares are now populated with darkspawn, hordes of them, usually an entire army surrounding him. He's running, running constantly, but he's got nowhere to go: the darkspawn are everywhere.

He can't escape, and worst of it all, he's always alone.

 

…

When Hinata wakes this time, it's to the pounding of his heart, the pulsing of his blood through his veins, his entire body thrumming with anxious energy. He feels like his body is on fire. He sits up with a jerk, a clammy hand grasping uselessly at his chest, trying to reassure himself that his heart still beats.

_BadathumpBadathumpBadathump_

It's irregular, and rapid, and feels like it might burst out of his chest, but for the moment the pounding he feels against his hand is reassuring.

His breath is coming in great panting gasps, and he doesn't feel like he'll ever get enough. He wipes a shaky hand against his brow, pushing sweaty hair out of his face.

Suddenly, it's as if his body remembers where he's at, and he shivers violently, chilled by the thin film of sweat coating his body.

Hinata looks around, tries to focus on his surroundings, ground himself. It's been a few days since they left Ostagar, but it seems like his nerves insist on staying with the wreckage they left behind them.

Natsu's lying next to him, thankfully still asleep. She's finally started to get some rest, albeit fitfully, and Hinata doesn't want to be the reason she's woken up.

She shouldn't need to worry about him.

Just off to his right, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi are dozing, or as close as they probably get to it. Tsukishima's breathing looks too measured for him to actually be asleep. Hinata doesn't blame him, and wonders if he's been having the same nightmares.

_Ba-thump._

_Ba-thump._

_Ba-thump._

Hinata's heartbeat almost feels too slow, as if everything is in slow motion, now that it's calmed down. This hasn't been the first time he's woken up from a nightmare like that.

He thinks they're getting worse.

He rubs his arms viciously, trying to chafe the chill away. It doesn't really work. They're still in the marshes, but Kageyama says they're nearing the end, that they'll reach the imperial highway tomorrow or the next day.

Hinata's not really sure how much trust to put in Kageyama's directions, but he's the best they've got right now, and at least they haven't run into many more darkspawn, so Hinata doesn't begrudge him for leading.

Kageyama himself is sitting hunched over, a few feet away from the others, looking up at their surroundings every few minutes. The sky has started to take on a grayish hue instead of the inky blackness of the middle of the night. Sunrise must be near.

Figuring he's not going to be falling back asleep tonight, Hinata gets up slowly, careful not to disturb Natsu, and walks over to Kageyama.

Hinata sits down next to him, not saying a word. The other warden isn't startled by his presence, so he must have noticed Hinata startle awake from his nightmare.

This isn't the first night he's silently joined Kageyama for watch.

He looks over to see what Kageyama's hunched around, curious at what he's working on.

Kageyama's fingers are gently flipping a piece of wood back and forth between them, rolling it from palm to palm, every now and then scratching a sliver off. Hinata wonders whether it's a nervous habit or if he's making some kind of charm or figure.

It mostly just looks like a formless lump right now, though. Hinata entertains the thought of it being the same branch from the first night for a moment before discarding it. Not the right shape.

"You been up all night again?" Hinata ventures, moving his gaze out to the thickening woods around them. He supposes it makes sense, for the marsh to give way to a forest. Not like anything lacked the water to grow.

"Have another nightmare?" Kageyama grunts back, flipping his piece of wood up in the air, catching it with ease.

Maybe it's just a way to keep himself awake, Hinata thinks as he shoves his hands under his thighs to keep their shaking from giving him away.

"You should get some sleep," he says instead, leaning over and gently nudging Kageyama's shoulder with his own. "We'll be moving in a few hours anyway. You'll want the rest."

"Mm," Kageyama hums, and Hinata can't help but think he looks like shit. Not that he's going to _say_ Kageyama looks like the stains left behind in Maferath's bloody trousers after facing the wrath of the Maker, but he can think it safely enough.

Kageyama heaves a sigh, and gets up after a moment. Looks like he's going to take Hinata's advice after all.

Good. They couldn't afford to have their guide collapse from exhaustion, especially not in the midst of an ambush or something.

At least, that's what he tells himself when he wonders why he cares so much, watching Kageyama slip the piece of wood into a fold in his robes as the first rays of sunlight begin to creep over the horizon. They'll want to wait until the light is fully out.

Leaving early just to be surprised by a pack of feral wolves isn't exactly the ideal day of traveling.

Kageyama nods to him briefly before walking toward the others, curling up and quickly falling asleep. Hinata doesn't know how he does it – as if he could just turn his nerves off, Kageyama seems to be able to sleep anywhere, anytime, at the drop of a copper.

Hinata worries that's a skill he'll acquire, too, before too long. He can't deny it would be useful, though.

With a sigh, he puts Kageyama out of his mind, and scans the trees around them, wary of anything that might be a threat.

They had a long day of hiking ahead of them.

Again.

 

…

"So… where are we going again?" Natsu asks, holding her arms up for Hinata to boost her over a particularly wide fallen tree trunk.

"Here, let me," Yamaguchi offers, and while Hinata would normally protest that he could do it, he was a bit doubtful he'd be able to crawl over the tree himself. It was nearly as tall as he was, and if it hadn't been such a large tree, they'd probably just walk around it, but it looks like it goes on _forever_.

"It's called Soldier's Peak," Kageyama says, probably for the fifth time since they'd started walking that morning. "It's about a week out from the Imperial Highway."

"Yeah, well we're gonna have to find a place to stop for supplies first, if we'd prefer not to starve," Tsukishima grumbles, standing on the other side of the tree and easily receiving Natsu from where Yamaguchi carefully lowers her down.

"If the imperial highway is nearby, there should be a local town not too far," Hinata suggests, scrambling up and across the wood, trying not to get splinters caught in his hands as he hauls himself up.

"Thanks," Natsu says as Tsukishima sets her down, and Yamaguchi comes sliding down next to them.

"Yeah, no problem," Yamaguchi smiles at her, and glances back at where Hinata is eyeballing the ground. "Would you like some hel-"

"Nope, I got it, just lemme- WAH!" Hinata tries to lever himself down slowly from the top, but misjudges the distance, and his grip. His fingers scrape against the rough bark and slip, and he lands on his rump on the ground with a loud _thunk_.

Yamaguchi offers him a hand to get back up, but he glares at it _and_ Tsukishima, who is giggling quietly on the side. "I'm _fine_ thanks."

"Yeah, Lothering shouldn't be too far, and we should reach the highway today," Kageyama says, landing down behind the rest of them with a graceful jump. Hinata narrows his eyes at the mage and pretends not to be jealous.

He doesn't know how successful his pretending is, though, because Tsukishima's giggles don't seem to be stopping.

Hinata resolves not to walk next to him for the rest of the day, and speed walks in front. He slows down when he hears the pitter-patter of little feet behind him, and forces his heart to calm down.

It's just Natsu. Nothing to worry about. Just Natsu. Nothing's chasing him.

"Hinata, it's this way, actually," Kageyama says, pointing off to the right. Hinata had instinctually turned away from the blindingly bright sun.

"Well then lead the way, o great navigator," he grouses, following as Kageyama simply shrugs off his tone and walks on.

"Don't be grumpy, we're all tired," Natsu scolds, sliding her hand up into Hinata's grasp and holding as many of his fingers as she can fit in her little palm.

Hinata sighs and tries not to feel embarrassed. "You're right- Sorry Kageyama," he calls out, holding onto Natsu's warm hand tightly.

They might be getting nearer to civilization, but with sleep so hard to come by, and nightmares constantly waking him whenever he manages to find some, it is hard not to be crabby. Add that to traveling with an annoying Templar, a blunt blood mage, and his little sister, all on edge and hoping not to run into darkspawn, and the air is nothing if not a little tense.

Oh, and he supposes Yamaguchi is there too. He seems to be the only relatively calm one in their group. Normally that thought would make Hinata a bit uneasy, but Natsu trusts him, so Hinata figures he can too.

 

…

The next day they stumble onto the imperial highway… but not in the slightest where Kageyama had thought they were going to be. It has taken them days longer than it should have to get there, and they are lucky that Yamaguchi knows on sight what is edible in the woods and what isn't, because otherwise they would have been up a hungry creek without a paddle.

As it is, when they emerge suddenly from the woods onto the road, a sudden break in the trees making them blink at the brightness, Kageyama's warning shout of "Darkspawn!" is a bit delayed.

"Natsu, stay back with Yamaguchi," Hinata says, immediately pulling out his knives and orienting himself toward the sounds of grunts and snarls. Just up the road a short ways Hinata spots a wagon, and though he can't see any occupants, there must be at least one, as the wagon looks like it's in still in pretty good shape.

Abandoned stuff doesn't last long in war.

The darkspawn look like they've only just started coming out of the other side of the woods, and Hinata finds himself wondering, not for the first time, how wide of a berth Kageyama needs to be able to sense the darkspawn. He wonders when he'll be able to feel them nearby, too. Kageyama isn't that great with communicating, and always seems to warn the others just barely in the nick of time.

Hinata doesn't like having to rely on something so unreliable.

He puts it out of his mind for the moment, however, and focuses on the battle at hand. There are only three darkspawn, and they don't seem to have noticed the newcomers yet – although it isn't like they're being _sneaky_.

Must be low-ranking darkspawn. Hinata's starting to realize that not all darkspawn are created equal. (In fact, most of them are about as dumb as a sack of rocks. As effective in battle as a sack of rocks, too, though, which is to say if you're not careful they can inflict some _serious_ damage. Hinata tries not to get hit by their spiked clubs generally.)

The three darkspawn seem much more occupied with whoever is within the caravan, and Hinata refuses to let himself be distracted by the low voice roaring from within the wagon. Instead, he crouches down and rushes behind the nearest darkspawn, sliding his dagger beneath the edge of its armor, slicing deep into flesh and immediately catching its attention.

It roars as it turns toward him, and Hinata's blade catches in the edge of its armor, throwing him off balance. He starts to stumble, tripping on nothing, and manages to save himself with a quick roll at the last second.

He's glad they're on the road, now. He couldn't have managed that if they were still in the woods.

He hears Tsukishima crashing in next to him, barreling against the other two darkspawn, but doesn't pay it much heed, focusing on his own opponent. Since he's down on the ground already, he takes advantage of it, kicking a leg out to pull the darkspawn to the ground with a heavy thud.

Hinata knows that battle must be loud, but somehow, whenever he's fighting, it feels as if all the sound is coming from far away, almost as if he were a kid playing under the water in the tub again. Except with blood. And sharp weapons. And nasty creatures trying to kill him.

So not really like when he used to play under the water in the tub, at all. Except for the muted effect.

The darkspawn looks like it's about to get up, but then it freezes. Hinata doesn't know why but he takes advantage of it anyway, rushing forward and shoving his blade into its eye socket. The darkspawn are, after all, living creatures – a good shot to the brain is usually enough to take them out.

It's short work between the three of them to take out the other two darkspawn, and before Hinata knows it, there's a few bodies scattered along the road, and his hearing is returning to normal.

The first thing he hears is Kageyama and Tsukishima fighting. He wonders if he'll ever get used to it.

"-fucking MAKER you did it AGAIN, EVERY TIME IT JUST ERASES ALL MY HARD WORK!"

"I'm used to fighting AGAINST mages, not fighting WITH them!"

"WELL GET USED TO IT, IT'S FREAKING ANNOYING."

It takes Hinata a few moments to piece together what has happened, but when he notices that Kageyama is gesturing angrily with his staff, and Tsukishima's hands are faintly glowing, he thinks he understands.

Templars have the ability to cleanse magic, and it seems like Tsukishima has the bad habit of automatically using it whenever he spots magic on the battlefield. Unfortunately for Kageyama, this isn't the first time it's happened.

Hinata doesn't have much time to worry about it, though, because he's distracted by the man who has hopped out of the wagon and dropped in front of him. He's stocky, and a little shorter than Hinata, but not by too much. His black hair is tightly braided back on one side, and sticking out haphazardly on the other. He isn't wearing much in the way of armor, but if the wagon is his and he's a merchant, Hinata supposes that would make sense. He drops a maul that looks entirely too large and heavy for him down onto the ground, and Hinata scrambles to move his feet out of the way quickly enough.

"Thanks for the help, but it really wasn't necessary," the man says, and Hinata recognizes the same low grumble he'd heard shout out before. "There were only three of them."

Hinata cocks his head, surprised at the man's response. Most people (including himself) are at least _slightly_ terrified of darkspawn. But he doesn't seem to care in the slightest….

The man thrusts out a hand toward Hinata, introducing himself. "Kuroo, merchant dwarf, at your service."

"Uh… Hinata, Grey Warden…?" Hinata responds, not sure what to say and following Kuroo's lead as best he could. His own hand reaches forward out of habit, and he gets a hearty shake in return from the dwarf's. Behind him, Hinata becomes aware that the others have stopped shouting. "I thought all dwarves had _beards_ though?" He asks in confusion.

"Yeah, well I thought all humans were giants," Kuroo responds easily, pausing for a moment as Hinata sputters. "You _are_ human, right? Not some kind of Halfling?"

"I'm not that short!" Hinata finally manages to shout indignantly, straightening up and using every inch of his height to look down on the dwarf. It doesn't do much.

"Did he say merchant? We should ask if he's got food," Yamaguchi says, and when Hinata spins around to look behind him, he spots Yamaguchi walking forward with Natsu cautiously peeking around from behind him.

As if in answer, Hinata and Kageyama's stomachs growl in tandem, and Kuroo laughs loudly.

"You're lucky they weren't looters, darkspawn are usually more concentrated on taking lives than merchandise, heh," Kuroo chuckles, poking his head back into the cart and mumbling something in a language Hinata doesn't understand. Must be a dwarven dialect, he supposes, wondering who else is inside the wagon.

"You seem pretty calm for someone who was just attacked by darkspawn," Kageyama comments, voicing what the others are surely thinking, while watching Kuroo's movements warily.

"Well, I spend a lot of my time in the tunnels, they're all over the place there. I mean, normally I just run away, but that's a little harder with a wagon…," Kuroo rummages around inside of the wagon, trailing off to himself.

"Hi! What's your name?" A bright voice sounds, and Hinata looks around wildly to see where Natsu has gone. While the rest of them were focused on Kuroo, she seems to have snuck around the back of the wagon, and is now brightly addressing whoever else is in there.

"Ah, that's Kenma, he's a bit shy," Kuroo comments, withdrawing from the wagon with a box filled with dried vegetables in his arms. "C'mon Kenma, come out and say hi."

"Natsu, come on out of there, we don't even know these people," Hinata calls, and Natsu hops out of the back of the wagon obediently, trotting over to stand next to her brother. She had been peeking shyly from behind Yamaguchi just a moment ago, Hinata thinks, how can she be that comfortable with strangers already?

"Hey now, I'll have you know that dwarven merchants are _extremely_ trustworthy… so long as you aren't trying to cheat us," Kuroo says with a grin, helping a second dwarf down from the wagon. "Anyways, as I said, I'm Kuroo, and this here is Kenma. Now you know us."

Kenma is smaller than Kuroo, and not quite as stocky, but not nearly as skinny as Natsu is. He's just about Natsu's height, and won't look up at any of them, his shaggy blond hair hanging loose in front of his face like a curtain. "Hullo," he says, so quietly that Hinata's not sure he heard it.

"Hi! I'm Natsu," Natsu says back brightly, a smile stretching across her face. Hinata wonders if Kenma is about her age – they're the same size, just about, but with dwarves that doesn't really tell you much, he guesses.

"That's Shouyou, my brother," Natsu continues, leaning into Hinata's side, "and that's Yamaguchi, grumpy Tsukishima, and grumpier Kageyama. They like to shout a lot," she adds in a mock whisper, pointing out each of their group as she introduces them. Kageyama looks like he wants to say something but refrains, and Tsukishima just frowns harder. Hinata has to stop himself from laughing.

"Lovely to meet you, Lady Natsu," Kuroo responds with a gentle smile and a small bow. "As said, I'm Kuroo, a merchant, and this is my son, Kenma. We sell trinkets, weapons, armor, provisions, you name it – and Kenma here is a right genius at enchanting with runes, though he'll never say it himself." Kuroo jostles the other dwarf's side a bit, but doesn't force him to talk himself. "How can we help ya?"

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, we're a bit low on provisions," Yamaguchi says, speaking up. "We don't really have much to trade, though…"

"We _did_ just save you and your caravan from darkspawn, though, that ought to count for something," Tsukishima points out bluntly, staring Kuroo down challengingly.

"I suppose that is the case, though it really wasn't necessarily – we can handle ourselves. But yes, yes you did," Kuroo allows after a moment of intense staring, and finally sets the box of dried vegetables down at his feet. Hinata idly wonders how strong his arms must be, to have been holding that heavy crate for so long. Kuroo doesn't seem to have minded it one bit, though.

 

…

After a bit of a lengthy discussion – in which Hinata and Yamaguchi argue for Kuroo and Kenma to join them, and Kageyama and Tsukishima are difficult, as usual, and glare at each other when they realize they are, for once, on the _same side_ of the argument – it is decided that they'll all travel the rest of the way up to Soldier's Peak together. As it turns out, Kuroo and Kenma don't have a particular destination in mind, and though Kuroo keeps saying they can handle themselves, he also says that "there's no harm in numbers" when it comes to traveling through darkspawn-infested land.

In the end, it's the fact that they'll be able to move much faster with Natsu riding in the wagon with the dwarves, along with the point that Kuroo has actual _food_ and they most certainly _do not_ , that settles it. They travel just a bit further before they stop for the night, for once making an actual camp of sorts.

"Yeah, but what kind of useless maleficar can't even read a _map_?" Tsukishima asks scathingly, glaring over at Kageyama. (Kuroo had informed them where, exactly, on the imperial highway they were, pointing it out on a map he had in his wagon, and it was not even slightly close to Lothering. In fact, they weren't too far from Soldier's Peak. They'd wandered a bit more than expected in the forest escaping the darkspawn, it seemed.)

"I DIDN'T EXACTLY TRAVEL FOR A LONG TIME BEFORE THIS BATTLE, OKAY!?" Kageyama shouts back defensively, folding his arms and meeting Tsukishima's glare evenly.

It looks like they're about to get into another full blown shouting match, but before they can, the bubbling sound of boiling water cuts through the conversation, along with a fragrant scent. "Dinner's ready," Kuroo calls from where he stands next to the pot, stirring, having decided to make food like a sensible person.

At the prospect of food, all other conversations quickly drop, and Tsukishima's stomach rumbles loudly. Yamaguchi stifles a giggle as they all move over to join Kuroo at the fire, Natsu comfortably settling herself next to Kenma.

Hinata is so hungry he hardly knows what to do with himself when he is handed his portion in a heavily-decorated cup, burning his mouth on the hot soup before Kuroo can warn him. He can't taste much of anything after his first swallow, but decides he doesn't particularly care. The warmth and filling soup is more than enough for him, and he concentrates on slurping it down while the others talk around him.

Natsu is on his right, happily asking Kenma questions, even though he doesn't answer much, if at all. Naturally, this doesn't deter Natsu in the slightest, and she easily keeps the 'conversation' going.

"What's your favorite thing to do?"

"Enchantment."

"How'd you meet Kuroo?"

"…Enchantment."

"Where'd you grow up?"

"…"

"Do you like to do anything besides rune stuff?"

"…craft."

Seeing as their conversation isn't getting much of anywhere, though Natsu brightens at the different answer and nearly bounces with excitement, Hinata shifts his attention to the others around them. He starts listening in just in time to catch the tail end of a conversation between Yamaguchi and Kuroo.

"Alright, but what I don't get," Kuroo says, swallowing down what was on his spoon, and gesturing between Kageyama and Tsukishima with the freshly emptied utensil, "is that if the two of you hate each other so much, why do you both wear the same kinda skirts?"

Kageyama and Tsukishima look at each other, and their clothes, in quick succession, sputtering at the realization that both the mages and templars wear rather similar robes. Hinata tries not to snort his soup out his nose, and buries his face in the ornate cup in an attempt to hide his chuckles.

He has a feeling that having Kuroo and Kenma along with them is going to be a lot of fun.

**Codex Updated: The Enigma of the King and Commander: Stories of the Warden Commander Unlocked**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kuroo exists 5000% solely for riling up purposes bc he's a shit and I love him.
> 
> Also, I'm fully planning on posting up that Enigma chapter today. All the chapters for Enigma are going to be lil vignettes, super short.


	5. Soldier's Peak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Bonding," an explosion or two, and a certain Reliable Blacksmith gets introduced!

When Soldier's Peak comes into view, the edges of towers just barely peeking up above treetops, Hinata can't help the excitement that courses through him. He feels more energized than he has in days. Just the thought of being able to sleep without worrying about darkspawn sneaking up on them, or waking up to the sound of Tsukishima's startled yelp because a water snake decided he was appropriate company… he snickers at the thought, looking forward to being able to get some (hopefully) solid sleep for the first time in weeks.

The fact that he knows Natsu will be safe here helps, too.

Kageyama had told them that the towers were sealed off, but wouldn't discuss it past that; no why, or how come, and even Natsu's badgering about it only made him clam up tighter and glare at her until she went away.

Despite the fact that it won't necessarily be "indoors," exactly, Hinata is still excited for a place with _walls_ around them. There's something about being out in the open, in the wilds, that makes his skin crawl at night.

"Whoa," Natsu breathes out, eyes widening as they get closer, and the large structure comes into view proper. "It's so _big_."

"A shame it's all closed off," Yamaguchi comments, looking at the keep securely nestled amongst the towering trees. If they hadn't known it was there, they probably would have passed right by it.

Hinata thinks that might set Kageyama off into a growling sulk again, but instead he just whispers a "yeah…" and gazes up at the gate in front of them. He can't place the emotion in Kageyama's voice – it's definitely not the anger that he's used to hearing, though. He sounds almost… sad. But Kageyama and sad doesn't quite match up in Hinata's mind, and they're beginning to tromp up the steps to the gate, so he puts it out of his mind.

Kageyama quickens his pace, speeding towards the gate and calling out as they begin to hear a muffled pounding. Hinata thinks he might also hear the crackle of fire, beyond his line of sight, and tenses up for a moment, remembering what it was like to wake up to his home burning down around him.

"Daichi!" Kageyama calls out, pulling Hinata back to the moment as he kicks soundly against the gate. "I know you're back there, I can hear you working!"

The muffled pounding stops, and Hinata is certain he can hear the crackling of fire through the gate – but it isn't the same kind of out-of-control, deafening popping from that dreadful night; it's quieter, almost regular in the timing, and feels… smaller, somehow. That sense of danger he'd had moments before easily vacates as he listens to the heavy steps of someone approaching the gate.

"Tobio? What are you doing back so quickly?" A deep voice calls from the other side of the stone wall, and a moment later Hinata has a face to put to it.

This new man looks like he's around Hinata's father's age, and his face is scrunched up in a look of concern/confusion that Hinata knows well from his childhood. That's about where the similarities end, however, as this Daichi is broad, easily larger than any of them, and with short bristles of black hair sprouting from his head and going every-which-way. He's wearing burnt, stained breeches, underneath a thick leather apron, a pocket of which he easily slides a large hammer into.

"You've got quite the crew here, too," he says in surprise, lifting an arm to wipe the sweat from his forehead, and Hinata swears he can hear Tsukishima swallow next to him.

He doesn't blame him. This man has got to have some of the beefiest arms he's ever seen. It's rather impressive.

"The battle already over, huh?" Daichi asks with an easy smile, looking out at their motley crew as if scanning for a familiar face. Hinata can tell when he spots Natsu, and the wagon – his eyes widen in surprise, and his gaze darts back to Kageyama, the smile falling in favor of a furrowed brow. "Where's Akaashi, Tobio?"

Again, the older man uses what Hinata can only assume is Kageyama's given name, and he wonders at what sort of relationship these two have. They can't have known each other for long, he figures – after all, Kageyama has only been in the wardens for a few years, and this was a warden outpost…

Kageyama sighs, and takes a moment to glance around at their companions himself. When he returns his attention to Daichi, Hinata thinks he looks more exhausted than he's been this entire time – even right after they'd fought off all those darkspawn in the tower.

"It's been a long couple of days, Daichi. Why don't you just let us in?"

Daichi hums, but seems to notice the exhaustion of those in front of him, and disappears behind the stone wall without another word. Moments later, a loud clicking noise sounds, and the gate is hauled up, high enough not only for each of them to walk in, but for the dwarves' caravan to roll in as well.

That gate is large, and thick, heavy wood encrusted with moss and small plants, and Hinata wonders how strong this Daichi must be to be able to lift it so quickly, with such ease, all by himself.

His questions will have to wait, however, as they all pile into the courtyard and are distracted by the obvious presence of a _lived-in space._

 

…

Kageyama introduces the man as Sawamura Daichi, to which he immediately says "please, just call me Daichi." Hinata agrees and voices his own preference of name, and marvels at the space around him.

The courtyard itself is huge, a spacious area left mostly empty, but clearly well groomed. There's a huge tree just to the side of the gate, after entering the courtyard, almost as if it didn't get the memo when the wall was built that the forest was _outside_.

As they walk in, directly in front of them is a semi-familiar sight: a fire pit, surrounded by logs and boxes, and though a bit mismatched, they seem be a bit worn from use as seating. Hinata easily imagines wardens meeting here, talking, the arrangement reminiscent of where they had gathered around Akaashi in Ostagar.

Just beyond the fire pit, there's a small staircase, leading to a short outcrop that would, Hinata supposes, lead into the keep itself. Though the keep is sealed off, it's clear that the space has still been used, with a tent up on the balcony that is obviously cared for, the flaps tied closed with tight knots.

To his right he can see where the muffled pounding from before had been coming from – there's a small forge and an anvil set up, with large buckets of what he assumes is some kind of liquid for cooling hot metal, if the steam rising from it is any indication. There's a sturdy table that's strewn with pieces of metal, weapons and armor alike, tools scattered about.

There is one building that seems to be in use, but it is clearly a later addition – a sort of lean-to, built up against the side of the tall stone wall, not far from the smithy. It's got a sort of stall attached to the front, a narrow counter with a roof sticking out above it, the doorway behind covered by a sheet of fabric loosely flapping in the light breeze.

Must be where he sleeps, Hinata thinks, as he watches Kuroo, Kenma, Tsukishima, and Yamaguchi try to get the cart up the worn-down steps just outside of the keep and into the courtyard. It doesn't look like they could use his help, so instead he trails after Kageyama, who has followed Daichi and is slowly filling him in on recent events.

 

…

"…we managed to get up there, to light the signal, but it was too late. Ushijima didn't come, and Akaashi-" Kageyama stops, choking on the words stuck in his throat, and Hinata knows he should look away, that this isn't something he should be watching, this moment of vulnerability, but he can't stop himself.

"…he didn't make it," Daichi provides, quiet, his face neutral. Kageyama nods demurely in response, and Daichi claps a heavy hand over his shoulder.

What he says next is almost too quiet for Hinata to catch, but he thinks it's something along the lines of "it's not your fault." But why would _any_ of that be Kageyama's fault? It was the darkspawn, and stupid Ushijima for not coming. It was bad luck piled on top of betrayal.

"I should've been out there, protecting him," Kageyama mutters, probably louder than he intended.

"Yeah, because an _illegal blood mage_ would have been what turned the tides," Tsukishima snaps, and Hinata doesn't know when they finished helping the dwarves, how long he's been standing there, what he's heard.

If it were anyone else, Hinata wouldn't think he'd heard that much, but it's Tsukishima, and Hinata wouldn't put it past those two to try to hurt each other as much as possible. Apostates and templars don't mix.

"You don't know that!" Kageyama shouts, turning back around. "I could have made the difference! I could have kept him from _dying_! If only I hadn't been forced to _babysit you_!"

"For all you know the call would have been too strong for you! I'm surprised you haven't been corrupted yet, a BLOOD MAGE who uses FORBIDDEN MAGIC. You should be cleansed and DIE for what you've done!" Tsukishima bellows back, and Hinata is frozen in place, unable to do anything but watch.

The tensions between Tsukishima and Kageyama have been building since before Hinata had even met them, and the past few days have been so challenging that now that their lives don't depend on keeping quiet and relying on each other, all of their anger and frustration is finally bubbling over.

At Tsukishima's words, Hinata almost expects Daichi to step in, to break things up, but he only looks away, his lips pressed thin in an emotion Hinata doesn't know how to decipher.

When he looks around, he sees Yamaguchi and Natsu walking up just behind him, huddling close to each other as their companions yell. Yamaguchi is cringing when Tsukishima speaks. Somewhere, perhaps back in their wagon, he assumes Kuroo and Kenma are diligently ignoring the scene.

As Kageyama shouts his response, Natsu flinches, curling against Yamaguchi's side, and Hinata yearns to go to her, to comfort her, but is rooted to the spot.

"THAT BLOOD MAGIC _SAVED YOUR LIFE_ WHEN YOU FROZE UP IN FRONT OF THAT OGRE! YOU ARE IN _NO PLACE_ TO SPEAK!"

"MAYBE I DIDN'T _WANT_ TO BE SAVED! YOU SHOULD HAVE NEVER MADE IT THIS FAR, BLOOD MAGE! YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN MADE TRANQUIL FROM THE VERY FIRST DAY THAT THE WARDEN-COMMANDER FOUND YOU!"

That's the line that breaks him. Hinata can't take this anymore. He's _not going_ to take this anymore. He won't stand for it!

"THAT'S IT!"

Hinata marches forward to stand between them, holding out his hands to separate them, although they had been shouting from a few feet apart from each other.

"We just survived a _horrible battle_ , not to mention _wandering around in dangerous lands filled with enemies_ , and ALL YOU'RE DOING IS UPSETTING EVERYONE! IS THIS REALLY WHAT YOU FOUGHT FOR?!" He looks viciously between both of them, full of rage that these two can't get along for _just one second_.

Yamaguchi's eyes have welled up with tears, and they've begun to leak as Tsukishima shouted about killing, or close enough to it, a mage, and Natsu has long since buried her face into his side, her shoulders trembling from the tension amongst them.

Tsukishima looks up, over at his friend, and Hinata can see his face fall with realization of what has just happened; what _he_ , partially, caused.

Kageyama glances around, and sees Daichi standing off to the side, but only seems to get more frustrated.

At Hinata's glare, though, instead of shouting more, or punching Tsukishima (though he looks like he _dearly_ wants to, and Hinata can't exactly blame him), he scowls and marches off to the tent on the plateau. He brushes angrily between Kuroo and Kenma, who have started to creep forward uncertainly.

"Uhm… we signed up for a safe haven, but do you guys need a minute…?" Kuroo asks awkwardly, looking around at the others. Kenma doesn't say anything at all, just gazing intently at Hinata, watching him closely.

Hinata deflates, some of the tension released, and feels exhausted. "Why can't they just stop fighting for _two seconds_ ," he huffs to himself, walking over to where Natsu is still curled into Yamaguchi's side.

"Hey, Natsu, Nacchan, hey it's alright now, no more yelling, ok?" He says gently, kneeling down to be on her level. He slowly coaxes her to relinquish her hold on the mage, and she buries her face against his shoulder to let out loud, wailing cries as he rubs her back soothingly.

It's times like these that Hinata is struck by just how much of a _child_ she still is. (Sure, Hinata himself is still technically a child as well, but… this last week has forced him into growing up. He doesn't want Natsu to feel the same way.)

Tsukishima takes a few hesitant steps toward Yamaguchi, one arm outstretched toward him, but the freckled boy won't make eye contact, stumbling backward at his uncertain advances. Before Tsukishima can even get close to him, Yamaguchi has turned around and ran off to the far side of the courtyard, leaving the templar at a loss, his hands dangling uselessly at his sides.

Hinata looks up just in time to catch Kageyama's eye as he surveys the emotional carnage of the scene, one hand on his tent flap.

Hinata pulls the sobbing Natsu tighter to his chest, and sends his best glaring daggers at Kageyama, _daring_ him to say something, do something, to even _try_ to not claim fault.

After a moment, Kageyama breaks eye contact, looking down and ducking into his tent, the flap falling back into place and blocking him from view.

 _Good_ , Hinata thinks. He doesn't want to see his ugly face for at least an hour.

Now that Hinata has fallen quiet, the only sound in the entire courtyard is that of Natsu's quiet hiccups.

After a few minutes of near-silence, Kuroo finally breaks it.

"Well, that just happened."

 

…

That night at dinner, the air is tense, and they all sit around quietly eating, no one really talking to anyone else.

"This stew is really nice, Daichi, thank you," Natsu says, blowing on another spoonful before sticking it in her mouth. Her eyes are still a bit red from earlier, but she hums happily as she eats, slightly rocking from side to side. Hinata recognizes it as her delicious-food-dance. It's good to know she's feeling better already.

"You're welcome, Natsu," Daichi says with a warm smile.

Quiet falls over them again, and the only sound is that of spoons clinking against bowls, and the occasional slosh of someone getting another helping out of the pot.

It's nice to be working with actual dishes, again.

(Daichi had pulled a surprising amount of dishware out from his house, although they all looked different, with designs curling around the edges of the bowls and the cutlery looking like they'd been pilfered from various fancy houses. "I like to make dishes, in my spare time. The intricate details are calming," Daichi had explained when asked why he had so many different styles of dishware in his house.)

A quick intake of breath breaks the silence. Daichi is staring at Tsukishima with eyes widened in recognition.

"You're that quiet little templar-in-training!" He exclaims, resting his arm on his thigh comfortably. "I didn't recognize you because you had been so much younger when I first met you! Ah, you were just a tiny little lad, all scruffy hair and bored glares. You've really grown up."

Tsukishima looked pointedly at the ground, mumbling a "I don't know what you're talking about," but the pink tinge to his face gave him away.

"You knew Tsukishima, Daichi?" Hinata asks curiously, looking over at the blacksmith.

"Oh, it was just in passing, but I used to go to the Circle all the time when I was younger," Daichi says, his smile still wide, "He was just a kid back then. Real little thing, couldn't have been more than twelve, all long limbs akimbo!"

Hinata snickers at the mental image, and Kuroo takes the opportunity to chime in.

"Was it that skirt that threw you off? I bet it was the skirt."

And just like that, the tension was broken, and the rest of the night was spent with relatively easy laughter and gentle fun poked at the surly templar.

 

…

That night, as everyone settles down – the dwarves returning to their caravan, Kageyama disappearing into his tent, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi off on the far side of the courtyard, talking quietly – Daichi asks if Hinata would help him with the gate for a moment.

Daichi clearly didn't have any trouble with the mechanism earlier in the day, but he shrugs, getting up to follow the blacksmith over toward the entrance to the courtyard.

Hinata gives the lever a test pull, and is shocked at how heavy it actually is. He figured it would be, what with the gate, but still…

Daichi chuckles lightly, and points out that there's actually two levers – it's supposed to be a two-man gate.

This only makes Daichi's raising of it earlier all that more impressive, Hinata decides.

They slowly lower the gate, cranking the wheels in time so it doesn't come crashing down or ruin the mechanisms. Though it's clearly old, it's well maintained, like everything else in this courtyard. _Daichi must really care for the place,_ Hinata thinks.

"You know, I saw what you did today," Daichi says, walking over to stand next to Hinata.

Hinata snorts. How could anyone _not_ see what he'd done. Everyone was forced to witness the whole thing, it was a spectacle and a half.

"No, really," Daichi says, commanding Hinata's attention. "You were just as frozen as the rest of us. Even I didn't step in, and I probably should have," he admits, glancing to the side.

Before Hinata can butt in that it shouldn't be his responsibility, however, he holds up a hand.

"I've known Tobio for years, I know he can have… a short fuse," he smiles slightly, as if sharing some inside joke. Hinata lets out a loose laugh, even though this time he secretly thinks it was more Tsukishima's fault.

Calling Kageyama's anger management a "short fuse" is like saying he and Tsukishima only _kind of_ don't like each other.

"But hey." Daichi places a hand on each of Hinata's shoulders, looks into his eyes carefully and makes sure he has his full attention. "You'll be a good grey warden. I can tell."

Hinata would think it'd be uncomfortable, this intimate gesture, or maybe remind him of when his mother would tell him important things, and make him feel sad, but mostly he just appreciates the sentiment.

"Thanks," he says quietly, looking up at Daichi with a small smile.

"And I'll talk to Tobio, tell him to cool it," Daichi adds with a wink, patting Hinata's shoulder lightly before pulling away. "Go ahead and get some sleep – I'll keep watch."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I sweeeeear this isn't always going to be pull-at-ur-heartstrings chapters. For some reason this one was really hard to write? Maybe because we're still in the midst of mourning and feels and sO MANY EMOTIONS BUBBLING UP. Shrug. Who knows.
> 
> Apologies for the huge wait – I was hoping to get this up before I had all these assignments and paperwork due, but turns out you didn't get it til after. Whoops! But soon we begin the REAL ADVENTURE! And they start to get over their damn tension, oh my gosh what a crew of drama queens.


	6. Lothering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After finally getting some actual rest, Hinata and the others forge onward in their quest to figure out what the halla is going on with the darkspawn.

The next day, Hinata feels rested for the first time since Akaashi came to visit back in Highever. He had nearly forgotten what it was like to get real sleep.

Over breakfast, it's decided that Hinata, Kageyama, Tsukishima, and Yamaguchi will hike out to Lothering. According to Daichi, it isn't more than a day's travel, and they might be able to learn a bit more about what's happened over the course of the last week or two.

Hinata doesn't know why, but Kageyama seems jumpy when he's at Soldier's Peak, even though _he's_ the one who wanted to come here in the first place. Hinata keeps catching him stopping in the middle of doing something – washing a dish, securing the flaps of his tents, relacing a boot, whatever – and suddenly walking away. The fact that Hinata has seen, first hand, this lead to at least two instances of Kageyama tripping and one near miss at running into a wall doesn't seem to stop him.

"I'm not sure if I'm ok with you leaving," Natsu worries, nudging her shoulder against Hinata's side. "How will I know you'll be ok?"

Hinata's heart stutters at the worried look in his little sister's eyes, and he tosses an arm around her shoulders comfortingly. "It'll be ok, Nacchan. I won't be going alone, at least – I'll have Yamaguchi, and Kageyama with me!"

He doesn't point out that Tsukishima is, of course, also coming. Neither he nor Natsu have any particular fondness for the tall blond.

"Besides, I gotta go – I can't just stay holed up here, now can I? After all, I _am_ a warden," he adds with a sneaky smile, making her giggle when he scrunches his nose at her. She always did like it when he made silly faces.

"Fine, fine- but you gotta be like the heroes in the _good_ bedtime stories!" She demands, wriggling out from underneath his arm and putting her hands on her hips in a power pose.

"Oh? And how's that?" Hinata asks, tilting his head to the side and smiling fondly at her. It's good to see her full of energy again.

Instead of immediately answering, she rushes forward into a hug, burying her face against his chest and surprising him. She mumbles something against his chest, but he doesn't catch it. He squeezes his arms around her to return the hug, waiting until she releases him to ask again.

"What was that, now?"

"Good bedtime story heroes come back alive."

 

…

 

It takes a bit more packing up – they'll actually have some food on them while they travel, this time! – and meandering around the camp before they're ready to go, but an hour later and Hinata, Kageyama, Yamaguchi, and Tsukishima all have hearty packs on their shoulders.

Natsu wouldn't let them leave until both Yamaguchi _and_ Kageyama promised to take care of her brother.

Hinata grins as he remembers how she'd stomped on Kageyama's foot when he wouldn't make the promise clearly enough to satisfy Natsu. A ten year old making a blood mage's eyes well up in tears of pain is certainly a sight to see.

Earlier, he had been a bit worried about leaving Natsu back at the camp, but now it seems like the safest place for _any_ of them at this point – especially as they follow the road further along, and _still_ don't see any signs of travelers. At least if she's at Soldier's Peak, she'll be safer than on the road with him, he supposes.

And by the way she was busy dragging Kuroo and Kenma into a conversation when they left, he figures she'll have no shortage of playmates, either.

He hadn't had the heart to tell her that, as much as he'd love to make the bedtime-story-hero promise, this isn't a bedtime story… the blight, and the darkspawn, are very much real.

"Wait!" Tsukishima's hissed warning pulls Hinata from his dark thoughts. _Someone up ahead,_ Tsukishima signals, holding a hand up to stop his companions and pointing up the road.

Yamaguchi perks up at the sound. "Travelers?" The road has been desolate all morning, and Hinata finds it kind of eerie. Isn't the Imperial Highway supposed to be heavily traveled?

"Or something else," Kageyama mutters, pulling his staff off of his back. "Might not be friendly."

Hinata silently agrees, and follows Kageyama's lead by drawing his daggers.

"I'll scout along the edge of the road, see what I can see," he says, and doesn't wait for a response before he's dropping his pack next to Yamaguchi, and ducking into the forest alongside the path. As he goes, he lifts his hood to cover his bright hair, quickly disappearing from his companion's view.

He moves as silently as he can through the underbrush, carefully sidestepping low-hanging branches and stepping lightly so as not to alert his prey to the sound of crunching leaves. Sometimes it pays to be small and light.

Especially when sneaking up on someone.

Or, as the case may be, multiple someones, Hinata notes, peering between the leaves to see at least three different heavy sets of boots shuffling out on the road.

He doesn't see any sign of track marks, or the light divots in the dusty road that come from a wagon, so it seems that the strangers are on foot, at least for now.

He presses himself behind a particularly wide tree trunk once he's in range, and quietly listens to see what he can pick up of their conversation.

"I'm _telling_ you, there's no one else coming along this road! A pass would have been a better choice," the first voice grumbles.

"The closest pass is on the _other_ side of the town, and you know the people are on the lookout for us. It's best to stay out here, ambush the stragglers." The second voice is clipped, and sounds impatient with the other.

"Only useful if people actually _come_ ," the first voice rebuts, "people, and _not_ darkspawn, mind you!"

" _Neither_ is going to be useful if you two clods don't stop alerting anyone around to our position," a third, gruffer, lower voice says, much quieter than the other two – Hinata has to strain to hear it clearly. The sound of two solid _thwacks_ comes moments later (along with two cries of displeasure), and Hinata can only assume the third voice is their leader.

Whoever they are, they don't seem to be pleasant, and Hinata doesn't really want to tangle with them if he doesn't have to. He figures it would be best to just skirt around this stretch of road, and perhaps warn those who might be thinking of traveling this way.

But he chooses just the wrong moment to step away, and silence falls behind him as he takes a wrong step and cracks a dry branch. Immediately, he freezes.

"Damn it- see what you've done! Who's there?"

Hinata knows he's given away his position, and he doesn't waste any time, breaking into a sprint back to where he'd left the others, his pursuers hot on his heels.

He stumbles a bit when he pops back out of the trees, startling Yamaguchi. "I brought company!" he shouts, half running across the path in an attempt to get his footing back.

"I knew this was a bad idea," Tsukishima grumbles, shield in one hand as he walks toward the side of the road.

"At least they're not darkspawn," Kageyama shoots back, as the three bandits crash through the trees.

Tsukishima makes quick work out of two of them, smashing one with his shield and knocking him into a second guy. They both go tumbling down into the dirt, and the third is left, standing still in shock, looking between Hinata brandishing his daggers to the left, and Kageyama with his staff glowing menacingly on his right.

"You really have two choices," Yamaguchi chirps from behind the others. "But I'd suggest you just give up."

"And tell us why you're ambushing people on the highway!" Hinata demands with a shout.

The standing bandit drops his weapon and raises his hands, while the two behind him slowly sit up. Tsukishima scoffs.

"Idiot can't even recognize a simple bandit."

"Excuse you, I am NOT-"

"I think what Hinata means to say is, why here? We haven't seen any travelers all day," Yamaguchi says, interrupting Hinata gently, and steering attention back to the three outlaws.

"See? Even _they_ know this is an awful spot!" One of the men on the ground shouts, throwing his arms up. Hinata recognizes him as the first speaker, a sallow looking man with a narrow build and deep scowl set on his face. Clearly he isn't listened to often, Hinata thinks, as the others don't respond to his comment.

"We're hardly the only thieves around here," the other man on the ground says, shrugging. "Killing us won't do much."

"You're not worth the effort," Kageyama sneers, letting the tip of his staff rest on the ground, though it still glowed. "I _could_ free you and leave you for some errant darkspawn, however," he hums, as if seriously considering it.

"Kageyama!" Hinata sputters, looking at him in disbelief. Surely he couldn't be that callous, even to bandits…!

"Oh come on, it's not like I'd actually _do_ it, I'm not _heartless_ ," Kageyama snorts, rolling his eyes.

The bandit standing in front, a more heavy-set man and probably the owner of the gruff voice, decides that is the perfect moment to take a quick step forward.

Kageyama doesn't even blink as he sends a blast into the man's chest, knocking him back several feet and leaving him sprawled between his two comrades, knocked out cold.

"I'm also not an _idiot_ ," Kageyama says, glaring down at the offending man, despite the fact that the bandit is in no state to hear him.

"Well… what should we _do_ with them?" Hinata asks, at a loss. He's never actually encountered something like this before – sure, his father had warned him about always being alert when traveling, not to go down unfamiliar alleys, and that cutpurses were especially prevalent in bustling markets, but it had never been anything Hinata had had to put into _use_ before. To him, those were still just stories.

"A lot of things can drive someone to stealing," Yamaguchi says simply. "It's not our place to judge."

"I'd suggest taking them in to the authorities in Lothering, but I don't really feel like lugging that much volatile dead weight around," Tsukishima adds, kicking one of the men with the toe of his boot.

"I guess… we could let them go? But if we ever catch you stealing again, we're not going to go easy on you!" Hinata adds, a bit louder than he intends, with a threatening finger pointed at the three men.

"This is stupid. Decide whatever you want," Kageyama says, turning away. "Just know, if one of them approaches me a second time, I will not hesitate to kill."

Something in Hinata tells him that Kageyama isn't joking this time around, and a chill runs up his spine. Would he really kill someone so easily, for something so simple…?

Either way, Hinata doesn't think he's going to be sleeping easily anywhere near Kageyama any time soon.

In the end, Tsukishima ends up tying the bandits together, and warning them that if they speak the local 'volatile maleficarum' might do something unpredictable.

This effectively kills any protests their prisoners might have had.

 

…

 

When they finally arrive in Lothering, the place looks overrun and in a poor state. Hinata hasn't visited many farming communities outside of those near his home, so he doesn't know what kind of quality they _should_ be… but he's pretty sure 'way too many people and definitely not enough food' isn't how things are supposed to be normally. Every few steps he feels like he's running into someone or getting his toes stepped on, and it's honestly a bit overwhelming. Hinata's never liked crowds that much. They make him feel queasy. Like something's just _waiting_ to go wrong.

After a particularly hearty bump, Hinata nearly stumbles backwards into Kageyama, who shoves him away in annoyance. He's about to lose his balance and wind up on the ground when Yamaguchi reaches out a steadying hand.

"Here, and keep a close eye on your belongings," Yamaguchi says, pressing something into Hinata's hands.

Confused, he looks down and sees his purse… which had been on his belt just a moment ago. It wasn't like he had much in it, but still…! "Thanks," he says, flustered, and carefully tucks the purse on the inside of his pants this time, an embarrassed flush rising on his cheeks.  

"No problem," Yamaguchi says with a smile, withdrawing his hands now that he's sure Hinata has regained his balance. Looking out at the crowd he shields his eyes against the sun.

Hinata follows his gaze and sees a fight ready to break out by one of the few merchant stalls, hears something about inflated prices. He double-checks that his purse is still there – despite having just replaced it moments earlier – and tries to be more aware of his surroundings.

"Why don't we try the chantry? They should be able to tell us what's going on," Tsukishima suggests, pointing to a building up ahead that seems to be the center of the crowd of people.

Hinata doesn't like the idea of fighting through the flow of traffic just for the privilege to get squished even more. He glances around to see what the others think, and it seems Kageyama agrees with his sentiment – if the nasty scowl on his face was anything to go by.

Yamaguchi, on the other hand, brightens up. "That's a great idea, Tsukki – we might be able to help them, too. It looks like they've got a lot of refugees around here."

Tsukishima just grunts noncommittally in response, and begins the hard work of breaking a pathway through the crowded street. It seems having large, bulky templar armor was helpful sometimes, Hinata thinks, following quickly behind him.

 

"Ser templar!"

They've barely entered the chantry when an older man in heavy armor bounds over to them, his curly hair matted down against his head despite the helmet clearly sitting under his arm.

"Do you know him?" Yamaguchi whispers, while Hinata looks on in interest. The heraldry splattered across the knight's armor, a single castle turret, looks familiar, but Hinata can't quite place it. He never did pay attention very well in history lessons at home.

"I don't know _every_ Redcliffe knight!" Tsukishima huffs back in annoyance, before greeting the stranger.

"Ser Hidemi Tashiro, knight of Redcliffe. Apologies for accosting you as soon as you entered, but we don't get many new templars down here," the man says, shaking Tsukishima's hand heartily. "I've been looking for word of another templar, if you don't mind."

Hinata wonders if Tsukishima is going to groan that he doesn't know every _templar_ , either, at the stranger, but he doesn't say anything, just nods to signal the man to continue.

"His name is Ser Kurokawa, kind of short, spiky brown hair? Last we heard from him he was in the Wilds," Ser Tashiro says, and Hinata's interest picks up. The Wilds? And the name sounded vaguely familiar… but so much has happened, he can't remember what it was.

"Ah, my condolences, Ser Tashiro, but I'm afraid Ser Kurokawa… didn't make it out of the wilderness," Tsukishima says, and as he reaches into a pouch at his belt, Hinata remembers where he's heard the name.

That was the name Tsukishima had said, his tone distant and cold, when they found the templar's body in the Wilds. He wonders how he could have forgotten it.

"He did leave some notes behind, which I hope you'll take," Tsukishima continues, pulling out the loose sheets of paper and pressing them into Ser Tashiro's hands.

Now that the mystery is solved, and their conversation turning into awkward, quiet comments, Hinata decides to explore the chantry a bit more. Kageyama appears to have wandered off already, and Hinata is sure Tsukishima won't mind him leaving as well.

And even if he did, Hinata doesn't really care.

The chantry itself is small, a big entry hall filled with pews leading up to a podium, and two rooms off to the side at the back. He's used to seeing beautiful colored glass windows in religious places, but with the state of the rest of the town, it isn't surprising that most of the light in this chantry is coming from an abundance of candles. Hinata has to be careful where he steps when he skirts along the walls, ducking beneath low-anchored sconces. The candles give the chantry a flickering sort of light, and makes Hinata feel as if he's supposed to whisper when he talks.

He's taking a peek into one of the side rooms – a room filled with shelves, books haphazardly piled upon each other and just begging to teeter off onto the unsuspecting reader – when someone calls out his name.

He turns around and sees Yamaguchi standing next to what looks like the Mother of this particular parish.

"Hinata," Yamaguchi repeats, waving his arm in an invitation to join them. "This is Mother Miriam, she's been telling me about what's going on here at Lothering. You were saying there's a lot of refugees," he says, turning back to the Mother.

Hinata looks up at her, listening as she tells them about how many refugees have been coming in wounded, and that they simply don't have enough materials to help them all. "There's been reports of the animals acting strangely as well, and the people are afraid."

Yamaguchi offers to help make more poultices, but when he invites Hinata, Hinata gently declines.

"I'm no good at healing things – need somebody poisoned, and I gotcha, though!" He chuckles awkwardly, and while Yamaguchi simply nods, Mother Miriam doesn't seem to like the comment. Her face clouds and she's looking at Hinata with a fresh scrutiny.

"Uhh, I'm gonna go…. Find Kageyama! Bye Yamaguchi!!" Hinata scrambles out of her sight as fast as he can, and hopes she doesn't think he's a mercenary or anything. Poisons are just as good as healing things! They both act as defenses! Just… in very different manners. And he usually doesn't _permanently_ damage a person with his poisons! …on purpose, anyways. Sometimes poisons can be finicky.

He really made a mess of that.

Figuring that finding Kageyama would probably be a good use of his time, Hinata sets about looking around the rest of the chantry. He peeks back into the room with the books, but doesn't spot him there.

There aren't many places to hide in this chantry, small as it is, so Hinata walks across the atrium – carefully skirting through the crowd so that Mother Miriam doesn't spot him again with her searing gaze – and pokes his head into the other room. It… looks like a bedroom. Small, and its furnishings are sparse, but there is a bed, a desk covered in papers, a chair, and bookcase filled to the brim.

Still no Kageyama though.

Hinata wracks his brain for the last time he saw the blood mage, and vaguely recalls him slipping away while Tsukishima was talking to Ser Tashiro. Hinata had thought that he'd gone further _into_ the chantry, but he supposes it's just as likely Kageyama took the opportunity to leave as well.

Maybe Kageyama doesn't like crowds much, either.

Hinata breathes a sigh of relief when he finally manages to escape the busy building. He's not sure if the air was _actually_ stagnant in the chantry, or if it just felt that way due to so many bodies pressed together and in desperate need of a wash, but there's something to be said for being outside again.

He looks around, spotting Kageyama leaning against the wall of the chantry, scowling just as hard as when Tsukishima had first suggested they check it out. Possibly harder.

Every time Hinata thinks Kageyama has reached the ultimate levels of scowling possible in a human face, he somehow manages to surpass them. The scowl isn't even directed at Hinata and he can't help but feel a little intimidated as he approaches the mage.

"What are you doing out here?" He asks, mentally telling his stomach to calm down, especially since he's out of the crowd now. (It doesn't listen, but that's never stopped him from trying before.)

"What are _you_ doing out here?" Kageyama gripes back, not even looking at Hinata, his jaw still locked in angry-as-maferath position.

"Finding you," Hinata answers with a shrug, following Kageyama's gaze to where some refugees are gathered around a fire, their conversation easily heard.

"I'm just saying, if he had a queen none of this would have happened."

"I don't think a woman would be able to stop him, though, he's very headstrong for such a young king."

"He's too flighty and excitable! If he had a woman, he'd have had a reason to return to the castle, to make sure his kingdom was safe. Maybe he just needs to fuck the energy out. I'm just _saying_ , if there had been a Queen Bokuto, he wouldn't have been so reckless at Ostagar. Plunging the whole kingdom into disarray…"

"That _was_ pretty dangerous." The voice dips for a moment, getting quieter, as if sharing a secret. "Killed a whole platoon, alongside himself, I heard."

The news is met with quickly muffled gasps. Apparently it hadn't spread quite so far, yet. "Good thing Wakatoshi held his troops back, otherwise it'd have been even _more_ of a bloodbath. Good riddance, I say."

Hinata can't help the anger that he feels coursing through him. How dare they talk about their king like that! And these people hadn't _been_ at Ostagar! They hadn't seen the bloodshed! They hadn't seen the sheer _horror_ that the darkspawn wreaked across the battlefield…!! "How dare they talk about our King like that…" he growls.

A hand reaches out and grabs Hinata's shoulder just as he takes a step forward, forcibly throwing him off balance and spinning him around.

"Why are you stopping me?" Hinata hisses, his own hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Kageyama just shakes his head, the barest movement side to side. But Hinata can see that his jaw is still tighter than a well-strung bow, and knows Kageyama is just as angry as he is.

"Why shouldn't we?! They can't just-"

"It's not. Worth it." Kageyama has to bite out his words but he says them nonetheless, and Hinata is frustrated that he won't act. It's in poor taste to speak of someone so immediately after their death, let alone the King…!!

"They're just refugees. What are you going to do, beat them up? It's not worth it," Kageyama repeats, staring Hinata down until he finally relents.

"Fine," Hinata grumbles, now doubly frustrated because somehow _Kageyama_ has more maturity about it than he does, and Hinata had been _raised_ to deal with tense situations. _Ugh, stupid mage_ , he thinks, stomping back toward the chantry. "Let's just go find the others."

 

Yamaguchi had already rejoined them when Tsukishima stomps over, grumbling about how people get doubly stupid when they're fleeing. Hinata doesn't say it aloud, but he silently agrees. People in a panic don't make good decisions, it's exhibited just by the crowds around them, the merchants and the townspeople.

"They're just scared – does being scared make them stupid?" Yamaguchi asks, as they wander further into the village, looking for the inn that Mother Miriam had said they could restock at.

"Does being scared excuse stupidity?" Tsukishima shoots back, and Hinata stays quiet. He's not exactly sure what is going on between those two, or what their relationship is, but he's not going to get in-between what's obviously a fight brewing.

He glances over at Kageyama, who had been strangely quiet ever since he'd pulled Hinata back from confronting those refugees. What does he think about the whole situation?

"If the animals have been acting strangely, it might be because of darkspawn nearby – or being infected with the taint. We should try to pinpoint where it's coming from," Kageyama says, as if to answer Hinata's unasked question.

The others agree that that seems a reasonable idea, and decide that while they're at the inn they'll ask around a bit more. The Mother didn't like talking about gossip and rumors, but Hinata is sure that half-drunk patrons are looser with their conversation.

Hinata's father had always told him 'ply a man with mead and he'll tell you details for days.' Hinata hasn't really had an opportunity to apply the advice before, but he figures now is as good a time as any, and leads the way, shouldering open the door to the inn.

The inn itself is a busy place, but not quite as overcrowded as the rest of the town.

"Paying customers only," a server brusquely informs them, brushing past them without much care for who he bumps into.

"C'mon," Yamaguchi suggests, "the bartender should be able to tell us what they've got available."

Ten minutes later and they've managed to get the bartender's attention, but the prices he's naming are exorbitant. Who ever heard of ten silvers for five pounds of grains and rice? It's outrageous!

Hinata pushes himself up against the counter, forcing the bartender to pay attention to him when he speaks up and takes charge. He folds his arms and glares up at the bartender, "Ten silvers is unacceptable for such a small order. Where do you get off with that asking price?"

Hinata probably shouldn't let his frustration get the best of him, but this is just the proverbial straw that broke the halla's back. Luckily, however, the bartender doesn't seem to take offense at the accusation, and simply shrugs.

"We've had looters and refugees alike tramping through our crops, stealing what they don't ruin. We have to make enough to survive, especially when we're overburdened with all these refugees."

Hinata frowns, but also sees the man's point. But, for once, this is something he's entirely prepared to deal with: bartering. "Fair point. If I can help your farmers out with the looters and bandits, will you give me a fair price?"

After a fair bit more haggling, and quite a few instances of raised voices, Hinata manages to get them a rate of a silver a pound, in exchange for some poisoned barbs and instructions for the farmers on how to build traps to protect their crops. It's not as cheap as he'd have liked – in reality, Hinata only managed to get the price down by about half, and that was still a relatively high rate – but it would do.

"I just wish we could do something about bandits. Can't even safely harvest in the fields with those scoundrels roaming about," a farmer complains, and points at a two small children, huddled quietly near of the walls of the inn. "Their mother worked for me – went into the fields last week, hasn't come back since."

"And you haven't even gone _looking_ for her?" Hinata asks incredulously, staring at the man. What an ass.

"There are _bears_ , you little rogue. While they might not be interested in a morsel like you, _I'm_ not ready to risk my life on some bloody irresponsible woman who's wandered off."

"Morsel?! Irresponsible?!" Hinata is about ready to explode at this man – this overweight, overcharging, fool of a man who didn't even bother to look for his own workers when they go missing. " _You're_ the irresponsible ass-mdfhrrrrff!!"

The rest of his insult is cut off by a nervous Yamaguchi pulling him back, smiling awkwardly at the man and saying, "ah yes, we must be going now, goodbye!"

Hinata _swears_ he sees a smirk on Kageyama's face as he's drug out of the inn.

"That's the _second time_ I've been stopped from clobbering someone for being a total asshole today!" Hinata rages, stomping his feet angrily when Yamaguchi releases him. "We're either going to go out into those fields and find some things to kill or you're going to let me go back in there and give that disgusting pig a proper what-for!"

None of the others have the heart to disagree, and so they follow after the small, angry man, determined to discover just _what_ was going on in the valley around Lothering.

 

It doesn't take them long to find the bandits – and it doesn't take much longer for Hinata to realize that, as angry as he is, he can't just _kill people_. (He really should have realized, after how he'd reacted to Kageyama's threats earlier.) But at least they get some information out of the bandits.

"We wouldn't be bothering with here-"

"-too many poor refugees-"

"-but our usual haunt, Sulcher's Pass, has become too dangerous."

"It was a better place anyways, a narrow space. It's too difficult to steal and frighten in large, open spaces like this."

"Well, you're not going to be doing it any longer," Hinata declares, feeling marginally better. "You'll be going back to Lothering, let the people decide what to do with you."

"What's so bad about Sulcher's Pass now, anyway?" Yamaguchi asks curiously, stepping back from tying the hands of the fourth and final bandit behind his back.

"There's these…"

"Creatures! They're huge, and disgusting!"

"They've got black blood, it's unnatural-"

"-and they're bloodthirsty. There used to be more of us, but not all of us got out of there alive…"

Kageyama frowns at the news, and helps begin to herd the bandits back toward town. "Sounds like darkspawn."

"Wouldn't they have to pass through Lothering in order to get here from Ostagar, though?" Yamaguchi asks, worried.

"Not necessarily," Kageyama answers with a hum, "see, darkspawn use the deep roads, old dwarven tunnels, to get around. Could be a new rift has opened up in the ground, allowing them to emerge from a different area."

"So what I'm hearing is we could be walking over the heads of darkspawn right now," Tsukishima deadpans, though his wariness is betrayed by the way his gaze flickers between Kageyama and the ground.

"Well, miles below us, but yeah, pretty much," Kageyama shrugs, as if it's nothing to worry about. "It's not really anything to worry about if they're far enough off that I don't sense them. You should be able to start sensing them soon enough, too."

None of what Kageyama is explaining is making Hinata feel any better. Miles below the earth or not, the possibility of them walking over darkspawn at any given moment… it gives him the chills. He rubs his arms roughly, attempting to calm down.

"You're…. not going to suggest we… go check out that Sulcher's Pass place, are you?" Yamaguchi asks, looking faintly sick.

"Well, we need to see how far the taint's been spreading – so, yes, that's what we should do after dropping these men off," Kageyama says, matter-of-fact.

"Great," Tsukishima grumbles, "might as well run _into_ death, I suppose."

They're approaching the edge of town, and Hinata is feeling distinctly sick to his stomach – whether from the conversation or the prospect of facing more darkspawn so soon, he isn't sure. "I'll go ahead, and find one of the templars," he says, seeing an opportunity to take a moment and separate himself from the conversation. "Be right back."

"You know, I think I saw a handful of prisoner cages when we first walked through here, it's probably where the bandits will be put anyway…"

 

…

 

When Hinata enters the chantry, he sends the first templar he spots ahead, telling him that there are some bandits who they've dispatched and need seeing to. Watching the templar walking away, Hinata leans against the wall, hoping to take a moment to calm down and breathe. It seems like everything is either happening at breakneck speed, or paused at some kind of standstill. He's spent so much time in the last two weeks simply _traveling_ , walking everywhere, that it almost seems like time had stopped. And yet…

He doesn't even think he could count on his fingers all the things that have happened since Ostagar. And now they were going to take the fight directly _to_ the darkspawn? Already?

It was all a bit overwhelming.

When Hinata finally works himself up to get back to the others, he finds them crowded around a cage separated from the others, which now holds the bandits they had apprehended.

Hinata stands on his tiptoes, as if doing so would allow him to peer over the heads of his much-taller companions, but doesn't see much else besides some dark gray protrusions that he doesn't know how to make head nor hide of near the top of the cage. There was clearly some kind of occupant, but he couldn't imagine who would be that tall…

"…never actually seen one in person, before," Tsukishima is saying quietly, peering up at the cage. "He's… bigger than I expected."

Yamaguchi only hums curiously, and Kageyama is so busy staring at the cage that he doesn't hear Hinata approaching from behind.

"What are you looking a- _whoa_ ," he breathes, having finally pushed his way in-between the others for a peek.

In the cage stands what is quite possibly the tallest man Hinata has ever seen. Except… well, he's not exactly a _human_ , Hinata supposes, taking in the dark grey skin and, what he hadn't been able to figure out before, the great curved horns protruding from the stranger's skull. Each horn began, thick and strong at the edge of the forehead, and curled out and forward, as if to be used to impale enemies.

As for the man himself, he certainly looks strong enough to impale a man on his horns - he has no shirt, and is thoroughly muscled where Hinata can see. His eyes are closed, and his brows appear to be permanently angled downward, but Hinata doesn't think he's sleeping – his downturned, pointy ears twitch every few seconds as they stare at him.

Hinata has heard stories about these people, always at war with the Imperium, but he never thought he would see one in person in his lifetime.

"Is that…?" He trails off, and Kageyama is the one to finish his sentence.

"A Qunari, yes, I believe so."

A wild thought crosses his mind, and before he can think it through his mouth is moving, all while he continues to stare at the quiet qunari in front of him. "Hey, Kageyama, those warden treaties allow us to recruit _anyone_ , right…?"

There's a moment of silence, as Kageyama looks at Hinata incredulously, before saying, "…no. I mean, yes, they do, but-"

Before Kageyama can tell him he can't do it, Hinata speaks up to the great man in front of him. "Would you like to join the wardens and fight darkspawn?"

("Hold on, he can't be _serious_ ," Tsukishima is complaining, but as usual, Hinata pays him no heed.)

Upon being addressed, the qunari's eyes finally open, and he immediately fastens his piercing grey gaze on Hinata. "You would trust me to fight alongside you?"

Kageyama is still trying to interrupt and tell Hinata he can't do this, but Hinata ignores him. "Don't see why not – I hate that guy," he adds, nodding to Tsukishima, who is still sputtering arguments, "but I still kinda trust him. In a fight, at least… mostly," Hinata adds, mostly in a mutter to himself.

Tsukishima bristles at the half-insult, but finally quiets down, realizing he's not being listened to anyways. Yamaguchi seems frozen, unable to do anything but watch as events unfold in front of him.

The qunari seems to think about it, not taking his eyes off of Hinata for a moment. For some reason, even though he knows he is being sized up, Hinata doesn't feel intimidated. They're supposed to recruit the strongest people to be wardens, right? To fight the blight?

Who could be stronger than a qunari?

"I will join you."

"Are you sure?" Yamaguchi squeaks out, looking rather pale as he stares up at the hulking figure.

"Great!" Hinata exclaims, looking past an exasperated Kageyama to hail the templar from earlier. "We're recruiting this qunari to join the ranks of the Wardens, under the rights of the warden treaties," he declares, hoping if he sounds confident enough the templar won't question him. Hinata hasn't even _read_ the treaties himself, but he's sure Kageyama has, and trusts Kageyama knew what he was saying when he agreed that, yes, he _could_ recruit anyone.

"Because that's a _great_ idea," Tsukishima grumbles under his breath, huffing as he moves to the side.

"If you're… absolutely certain," the templar says, warily approaching the qunari's cage, and looking at Hinata as if he's insane. (Hinata thinks, with this decision, he just might be. But only a little bit.) "You'll be responsible for all his actions, however – especially if he kills another innocent family," the templar warns, his tone serious.

Yamaguchi's eyes widen and he mouths the word _another_ at Tsukishima, who shrugs and puts his hands up in response, clearly frustrated. Hinata doesn't bother with either of them.

"Will do!" He says, before turning back to the qunari. "Now, uh… sorry, what's your name?"

"…Sten, a warrior," the qunari says after another quiet moment, staring down at Hinata as he delicately steps out of the cage so as not to catch his horns on the bars.

"Ok, that's your rank I guess, but like… what's your _name_?" Hinata asks, looking up at the great man as he stands next to him. He's even taller than Tsukishima. Hinata feels extra small next to him, but disregards that fact for how _cool_ it is that they've just recruited a qunari.

(Why the others even _let_ him recruit the qunari, let alone are listening to him, he's not really sure, but Hinata doesn't intend on questioning that at the moment.)

"Qunari don't _have_ names, they go by titles!" Kageyama hisses, smacking Hinata's arm.

"Well then we'll just have to _give him one_ , now won't we?" Hinata hisses back, rubbing his arm and glaring at Kageyama. He looks back up at the qunari, and offers him a big grin. "I'm Hinata. This is Kageyama, Tsukishima, and Yamaguchi. How about we call you… Tanaka?"

"That works," Tanaka agrees with a shrug, looking impassively at each of them in turn as Hinata introduces them.

The others don't seem to bear his intimidating gaze quite as well as Hinata does. Yamaguchi actually _shakes_.

"Alright. Now that we've all met each other, let's go! We're off to investigate some darkspawn, Tanaka," Hinata informs him, smiling broadly, and ignoring the other's reactions. He feels decidedly better about going to fight some darkspawn now.

He's not really sure _why_ , necessarily. But the uncomfortable gurgle in his stomach, and the speedy pitter-patter that had been his heart, is now back to its steady and familiar pace. The day is finally beginning to look up.

 

"Won't he need some kind of… weapon?" Yamaguchi asks, tentatively, looking over his shoulder at Tanaka, walking quietly behind them. For such a large body, and so much mass, he certainly moves lightly.

"We are _not_ giving that beast a weapon," Tsukishima responds firmly, refusing to even acknowledge Tanaka's presence behind him. His gait is a bit stiffer than usual, however, and his hands are tense at his sides.

"I imagine most qunari are trained to fight barehanded, as well as with a weapon," Kageyama muses, "after all, he certainly has the mass for it. Not to mention the horns… you think they fight with their horns?"

Hinata, meanwhile, is chattering away at Tanaka, walking a few steps behind the others, oblivious to their rude comments. "So we're going to be fighting darkspawn, and they're tainted, so you don't want to get any of their blood in your mouth, or a wound, or anything, because you'll get tainted too, and…"

"I'm familiar with darkspawn, yes," Tanaka responds in his deep, booming voice, nodding to show his attentiveness. Hinata lights up with the surprise, and jumps right back into conversation. It's not the first time he's had to keep up both sides of a conversation – and probably won't be the last, either.

"Hinata, shut up," Kageyama directs suddenly, shooting a wary gaze back at the qunari, "I think that's the pass up ahead. There's definitely something up there…"

 

…

 

A few hours later it is confirmed that, yes, while maybe not _all_ qunari are trained in hand-to-hand combat (Tanaka isn't exactly the most _talkative_ person, he mostly responds to direct questions), Tanaka can _certainly_ handle his own when it comes to fighting darkspawn without a weapon.

He also gets about ten times as loud when he's fighting.

Hinata's pretty sure seeing a bear's arms getting ripped off is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, but Tanaka seems to act as if this is a perfectly normal feat of strength.

It was a bit alarming to watch happen at the time, however, to say the least.

That night, after they have battled through a blighted bear, six giant spiders (Yamaguchi looked about ready to _faint_ when they came scuttling around the corner), and a small group of darkspawn, they make camp in the pass. It's an easily defended space, and since the darkspawn were actually just _before_ the pass, they don't really have to clear out any of the bodies.

Hinata's glad there weren't any shrieks with this group. He thinks the shrieks might be the worst of them. Being frozen in place… it's not exactly his favorite thing in the world.

"I don't like the looks of things… the blight is already spreading to animals," Kageyama says to himself, absently lighting the fire for them with a snap of his fingers. Tsukishima flinches, but Kageyama doesn't seem to notice, just continuing to mumble, "I'm not sure where we should head next, but we can't let this rest… but where to go next…?"

Hinata sits down heavily next to the fire, pulling out his daggers and a cloth, setting about polishing the blood from them. It wouldn't do to have a blade break off during battle due to poor care, and then be left weaponless. Hinata doesn't exactly have brute strength and _actual horns_ like Tanaka.

Actual horns that, at the moment, Tanaka is carefully cleaning, digging his fingernails into the grooves of his horns to pull out any remnants of gore from the fight.

"Are your horns… _carved_?" Kageyama suddenly asks, and Hinata looks up to spot Kageyama staring at Tanaka with his brow furrowed. "Are they runes? Patterns? What purpose do they serve?"

Interested, Hinata sets his daggers on his lap, and stares up at Tanaka's horns himself. They appear to have intricate little symbols, carved all around them, an inch or two from the base. He can't really make out what they are, especially not in the flickering firelight, but they _do_ appear to go all the way around the horn.

"Do you do those yourself?" He asks in awe, experimentally reaching his hands behind his own head, trying to imagine what it would be like if he had horns nestled in his bright orange hair. He'd have to cut holes in his hood, for one thing. "I can't even cut my own HAIR, how do you get the backs?!"

A smirk quirks Tanaka's mouth, and Hinata thinks it's the first time he's seen an emotion other than "stony silence" or "terrifying war-machine" on the qunari. In response to the many questions, he simply continues to clean the small crevices in his horns, his smirk remaining as he offers up a single word.

"Decorative."

"You've _got_ to be kidding me," Kageyama says, as if he's disgusted with the wasted opportunity for some kind of rune warding.

"Can you feel your horns? Wonder if it'd hurt…" Hinata mumbles to himself thoughtfully. He can't quite recall if other animals like sheep can actually feel their horns. But aren't animals' horns bone? Would a qunari and an animal even be comparable?

A derisive snort brings Hinata back out of his thoughts, and he sees Tsukishima glaring distrustfully at Tanaka.

"He was literally in a cage for _killing people_ , and you're asking about his horn care," he mutters, "but we're all going to die anyways so why voice my concerns, what's one new murderous addition to the party, at least he's still not as bad as the blood mage…"

"Tsukki!" Yamaguchi hisses, lightly jostling his friend. Tsukishima's mutters continue, but quieter, lost to the crackle of the fire, and Kageyama seems to have deigned to ignore this latest slight.

"But, uh… if you don't mind," Yamaguchi nervously asks, turning to look at Tanaka, "why exactly _were_ you still in that cage, anyways? It's pretty clear that you could have broken out any time you wanted to."

"That," Tanaka says, "is an unfortunate story."

**Codex Updated: Tanaka Sten: Warrior Unlocked**

**Codex Updated: The Enigma of the King and Commander**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha guess what I'M NOT DEAD! Also you guys know how I said I wasn't abandoning this fic ever? Well…. I'm nOT but wow yeah sorry for the huge wait. Life happens. So much. And this chapter proved surprisingly challenging. Thanks to the return of my beta Ro to push this one out this weekend. Hopefully the next chapters are more forthcoming! Next up a vignette and Tanaka's origin story side chapters, then we'll return to the main storyline!


	7. Nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Without a second thought, Hinata gets up and creeps toward Kageyama, intending to wake him from what's likely a nightmare.
> 
> He probably should have had a second thought, he thinks, as moments later he is holding stock still with the mage's sharp grip on Hinata's shoulder, an eerie feeling of icy cold beginning to seep through his arm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not dead! And still updating this fic! Yaaay (proper notes at bottom)

**CHAPTER 7: Nightmares**

After Tanaka told his story, the others settle in for the night. Hinata takes first watch, having finished cleaning his blades long ago. Now he just sits, quietly, listening to the snuffle of the others behind him.

For some reason, Hinata is _convinced_ that Tsukishima is a snorer. Just because he hasn't snored yet in Hinata's presence doesn't dispel his theory, either, he decides.

Tsukishima's a sneaky one.

But Hinata doesn't want to get _caught_ staring intently at Tsukishima sleeping (because how creepy would that make _him_ look, yikes) so he busies himself with cataloguing the stars up above him instead. He has keen ears, and figures he'll hear anything that tries to sneak up on them before they can get close.

It's as he's staring up at the stars, trying to find the constellation that's supposed to represent a high dragon. _That's what the archdemon is supposed to be, right?_

He doesn't exactly want to fight a dragon, either, no matter how cool it'd be. (He much prefers to keep his promise to Natsu, if he's honest with himself.)

He thinks he might have spotted the tip of one of its wings when his ears pick up on some more shuffling behind him. Glancing back, he looks in turn at each of his companions: Tsukishima, sleeping in as much of his armor as he can get away with, paranoid as ever; Yamaguchi, curled up on his side nearby, arms pillowing his head; Tanaka is over, leaning against the side of the pass, arms folded and head nodding down from the pull of gravity. He wonders if that will hurt his neck in the morning.

It's only when he looks through the gloom that the embers of the fire leave, and spots Kageyama, off from the rest of the group, that he realizes that that's who's making the shuffling noises. He keeps jerking from side to side, like he's got an itch.

_Well, it's not my business_ , Hinata shrugs, burying his hands deep into his sleeves to warm them as he looks back at the sky. _So long as it's not a darkspawn or a bear I don't really care_.

He's about halfway through tracing out the dragon's shape in the stars (draconis, he remembers finally, that was the name of the constellation), when he hears a sharp, panting sound.

When he looks back, he recognizes that it's still Kageyama making the noises, except now his body is jerking harshly from side to side, too.

Without a second thought, Hinata gets up and creeps toward him, intending to wake him from what's likely a nightmare.

He probably should have had a second thought, he thinks, as moments later he is holding stock still with the mage's sharp grip on Hinata's shoulder, an eerie feeling of icy cold beginning to seep through his arm.

"Kageyama!" He whisper-shouts, using his free arm to shake the other awake. "Kageyama, wake up!"

Kageyama's eyes snap open with a start, and for a single, horrifying moment, Hinata completely and utterly believes that he is going to be frozen solid for attempting to help.

_This sucks_ , he thinks, _I'm gonna die of aggravating companions on the road instead of saving the world_.

But the moment passes, and Kageyama quickly withdraws his hand, as if Hinata's arm was burning him, rather than Kageyama's hand emanating cold and numbness. (Is that a normal mage thing? Do they really emanate their element? Is Kageyama's element even _cold_?? There are so many things Hinata doesn't know.)

"S-sorry," Kageyama stutters, his eyes wide at the sight of Hinata so close to him, the indents of Kageyama's fingernails slow to fade from Hinata's arm.

"…yeah," Hinata says, not sure what _else_ to say, and rubs awkwardly at his arm to warm it up again. "You looked like you were having a nightmare," he adds, stupidly, as if it Kageyama needs to be told to know what happened. Hinata's mother used to wake him from nightmares as a kid and hold him, rock him until he calmed down enough to go back to sleep. Hinata doesn't think Kageyama would appreciate cuddling, though. He's not sure he wants to offer, either, so it's really a moot point.

"I… get them a lot," Kageyama says, running a hand over his face to wipe off the cold sweat. His breaths still come as quick, staccato beats into the quiet night air.

"Am I going to get them too?" Hinata whispers, after a pause. He knows wardens are supposed to get nightmares, too, but he isn't sure he's had any of them yet. A shiver runs down his spine when he recalls the other night, with the vague feeling of horror and… running? His memory of the dream/nightmare is fuzzy, and he can't bring himself to regret that.

Hinata has had more nightmares over the last few weeks than he cares to count. He wishes sleeping was dreamless. Then it could be an escape, and he might wake up refreshed, rather than with a jolting shock.

The breathless, mirthless chuckle that Kageyama lets out at his question surprises him. He looks back up, not realizing when he looked down at the ground, and gazes at Kageyama's face. Is he making fun? Hinata's ready to punch him in the face if he is, he _helped_ Kageyama for Andraste's sake, he woke him up…!!

"No, no," Kageyama chuckles, when he finally looks up to meet Hinata's gaze. "You won't get these kinds of nightmares. You can't," he mutters the last bit, as if sulking, before adding almost as an afterthought, "The warden nightmares are worse, but only if you remember them."

"Oh," Hinata breathes, not sure how to take that. Maybe the other night _was_ a warden nightmare, then? He couldn't remember what happened. He guesses that's a kind of dreamless sleep, if you don't recall it. He wonders if he'll ever get used to them.

"What kind of nightmares were they, then?" He asks, curious, and maybe a little of a challenge. What is a kind of nightmare that he _can't_ get? Aren't nightmares sort of… universal? They're about fears, usually, right? Were nightmares specific to people? He remembers Natsu being afraid of the larder and getting nightmares about it, but that was because one of the dogs had startled her there where she was little, and she had gotten over that anyways. The nightmares usually stop if you get over the fear, right? Hinata doesn't know if that's the same way with warden nightmares, though. Maybe they're special somehow, and not necessarily in a good way, like everything else about wardens seems to be. Looks good, but in reality… not so great.

"It's nothing," Kageyama growls out, "just stupid nightmares. Nothing a _non-mage_ like you could understand."

"Bet I could!" Hinata says, much louder than he intends. Kageyama glares at him in response.

Hunching up his shoulders a bit, and much quieter, Hinata defiantly adds "I bet if you just _told me_ , I'd totally get it. Plus my mother always says that talking about nightmares helps them go away anyway," he says the last bit in an angry mutter, not sure if he's really saying it for Kageyama's sake or his own. (Hearing about the warden nightmares kind of scares him.)  

Kageyama is looking at him a bit like he's crazy (this is a look Hinata is beginning to get used to, especially coming from him), but after a long pause, during which Hinata starts to worry he's said something wrong, and should maybe back up from sitting _right next to him_ , Kageyama seems to burst.

"It's just about being made tranquil, ok? There's a million and one things to worry about as a mage, and I'm probably not going to be made tranquil, so it's _stupid_ to worry about," he huffs in frustration, each statement punctuated with a dramatic slap of his arms against his thighs, his face scrunching up as if he's about to have a tantrum like a child, "and I don't even know where my phylactery is, it's been so long! If I should worry about _anything_ , it's that!"

After that outburst, Kageyama seems to deflate, his arms hanging loose by his sides and his breathing finally evening out.

It's a wonder they haven't woken up any of the others.

(Or attracted any unsavory company, honestly.)

Hinata just tilts his head in confusion, though, brow slightly furrowed. "What's a phylactery?" he asks.

The look he gets in return is a whole new level of "this is the stupidest person I have ever come into contact with" (and Hinata has done some really idiotic things as a child for the sake of attempted pranks, so he _knows_ what that looks like).

"You don't. Know. What a phylactery is." Kageyama's voice is totally flat, and it doesn't even sound like he's asking a question.

Since Hinata doesn't know what a phylactery is, he doesn't know how defensive he should get over this, but considering Kageyama's nightmares were so "mage-specific," he figures it probably has something to do with magic. And he has a vague recollection of hearing the word as a kid – though he knows better than to attempt to say it, sure he'll trip over seven letters before the end of it.

"I'm not a mage! I just know it's… something to stop mages from running away? I've only heard it in passing a few times, okay?!" He says with a huff, crossing his arms and glaring back at Kageyama. So much of this is new to him, and Kageyama expects him to know mage things, too?! Never gonna happen.

A new voice pipes up, quiet and matter-of-fact. "It's a vial of the mage's blood, enchanted to act as a locating beacon. Templars use them to track down apostates who've fled the circle."

Hinata looks around in surprise, and spots Yamaguchi sitting up, looking at them calmly. When Hinata only continues to stare at him, Yamaguchi shrugs.

"You're not exactly quiet, and Tsukki had a nightmare earlier."

Tsukishima hisses at Yamaguchi for his comment, but Hinata isn't paying much attention to them, too busy realizing that, for once, Tsukishima being a templar might actually be helpful. After all, if not knowing where his phylactery-thinger-merbob _is_ , is what's so distressing to Kageyama, they should maybe find it, right?

"Hey, Tsukishima, you're a templar, so you probably know where they keep those phyla-terwhatsits, right?" Hinata asks.

"Phylactery," Kageyama says, and Hinata nods.

"Yeah, that thing. Do you know where they keep 'em?"

"There are literally thousands of mages and he thinks I know exactly where a specific phylactery is when I'm not actively with the templars right now," Tsukishima says, as if speaking to some extra person who hasn't been present in the conversation. Tsukishima is weird.

Hinata didn't think of that, and he supposes that having a LOT of those little vials of blood would be a lot to sort through. "But… I mean, there has to be some place they _keep_ them, right? Especially if they're used to – what was it you said Yamaguchi? Track down apostates?"

Yamaguchi nods, and Hinata looks expectantly back at Tsukishima. Tsukishima just glares back at him.

Hinata has been getting a _lot_ of glares tonight, despite having only been trying to help Kageyama earlier. The only person who still seems to be sleeping is Tanaka, but Hinata suspects he's faking it to keep out of an awkward situation. Nobody breathes that evenly when they're sleeping. (And if the encounter from the cage held any water, then Tanaka was _really_ good at faking sleep.)

"The archives are huge! And besides, as a templar – even one who's sort of on…" Tsukishima struggls for the words, casting around for something that fits, "whatever this is right now, inactive duty I guess, I can't just _give away_ its location! To a _blood mage_ , of all things? How irresponsible do you think I am!?"

Hinata glances over at Kageyama to see what he has to say about this, and realizes they're still sitting approximately right next to each other. He scooches a few inches to the side, not sure he wants to be too close to the mage should he get… sparky.

But instead of blowing up, Kageyama's eyes narrow at Tsukishima, and when he speaks, it's suspiciously calm. "You're not here to be a warden of your own choice – don't pretend, we all knew it," Kageyama adds, cutting off Tsukishima's rebuttal before it could even begin, "you were sent to the order precisely _because_ I'm a blood mage. If anyone would know where my phylactery is, it would be you. The templars aren't _entirely_ stupid."

"Even if I _did_ know where it was, I wouldn't tell you," Tsukishima sneers in response.

Kageyama's hands start to spark, and Hinata is glad he scooted away when he did. "You'll tell me if you like to keep your limbs intact."

"Oooookay, maybe we should, uh, take a deep breath? Or something?" Yamaguchi says, chuckling awkwardly, almost uncontrollably. "And not kill each other?"

"Yeah…," Hinata agrees slowly, "though I do think Kageyama has a right to know where his blood-thing is. Like… it's a part of him, right?"

Kageyama takes a deep breath, as Yamaguchi had suggested, but his hands are still emitting the occasional spark, and his glare-off with Tsukishima hasn't lessened in the slightest. Hinata squirms slightly, uncomfortable in the palpable tension.

He feels like he's being squeezed on all sides, like when he's being scolded for doing something he shouldn't have, and this isn't even about him _at all_.

When the tension finally breaks, it's with a loud outburst.

"FINE! **I** have it!" Tsukishima shouts, throwing his arms up in the air. "Happy now?"

Kageyama's hands stop sparking, but his glare doesn't lessen. "Show it to me," he demands, "I need to see it."

Hinata feels like he's watching a pair of dogs fight, something that feels _wrong_ and extremely uncomfortable, but that he can't force himself to look away from. So he really can't help it if, when Tsukishima pulls out the pack he's been dragging along, he leans forward a bit in curiosity.

Tsukishima takes his time carefully pulling a small leather case out of his pack, setting it down almost reverently on his knees. The thing looks worn, and made Hinata think of his lockpicking kit, which he absently runs a thumb over as he watches events unfold in front of him.

Tsukishima flips the case over, to a side that looks less worn, and unbuckles a latch holding the flap down. Carefully, he pulls out an intricate, almost ornate glass vial, the stopper at the top glinting against the moonlight, illuminating the dark liquid inside. Hinata knows that it's blood, but it doesn't really _look_ like it is. Not that he's exactly close to it.

The moment is strange, the air tense, as the removal of the vial from the case is met with silence all around. When Hinata takes a moment to glance away from the vial to look at their faces, he sees confusion on Tsukishima and Yamaguchi's features.

"…are you _sure_ that's his, Tsukki?" Yamaguchi asks, his head tilted to the side, as if that would give him a better angle. "I've never seen one in a vial quite like that."

Tsukishima's brow furrows, and he glares down at the glass in his hand. "I haven't seen this style used in _ages_ , only some of the really old ones from storage are like this… like… storage because those mages are _dead_ kind of old." Slowly, he looks up over at Kageyama, brow still furrowed in confusion.

"It's mine! Of course it's mine? You think I wouldn't recognize my _own_ phylactery? Now give it here!" Kageyama demands, scrambling up and lunging toward Tsukishima recklessly.

"How can it be yours? You're like twenty!" Tsukishima argues back, clutching the vial close to his chest as protection from Kageyama's grabbing hands. "And even if it is yours, I wasn't going to give it to you anyway!"

Sure that _something_ was wrong about this, but not really sure what, Hinata pipes up with a simple thought, "Isn't it used to track mages? Can't you just like… track whoever's it is, and see if it's Kageyama's or not?"

"That's a good idea," Yamaguchi agrees, looking over at Tsukishima. For the moment, Kageyama has stopped his scrambling, but he doesn't seem pleased at this turn of events. Hinata can only see the back of him, but it looks like he's tense, and not from the nightmare or the fight earlier. From the sight of his phylactery so close, perhaps…?

"Alright, alright," Tsukishima grumbles, taking a deep breath. "Just give me some space, will you?"

Hinata, not realizing that he'd moved forward along with Kageyama (though not nearly as much), sits up straight, and Yamaguchi scoots back a few inches as well. Kageyama is the only one of them who doesn't seem to really move, but he does withdraw his hands for the moment, placing them at his sides.

With a look of concentration, Tsukishima mumbles a few words, and the glass in his hand starts to glow, and almost seems to be… vibrating? Is it trying to move toward Kageyama? Before Tsukishima gets a firm hold on it again and it darkens once more.

"Huh. It _is_ yours. The fuck?" Tsukishima says in surprise, looking back up at Kageyama, who still seems tense, but isn't meeting anyone's gaze.

"I told you," Kageyama mutters, staring firmly at the ground. After a pause, he adds, "they used a really old one outta storage, ok?"

Tsukishima doesn't look convinced, but Hinata brings attention away from the glass itself. "Well, what do we _do_ with it, now that we've got it? And we know it's Kageyama's?"

"Well I'm not giving it to him, if that's what you're suggesting!" Tsukishima says, pulling the vial back close to his chest. "He's a blood mage!"

Hinata really doesn't like it that Tsukishima keeps bringing up that fact, but he has to admit that Kageyama's tactics _do_ make him a little queasy to think about. But he also… well, he kind of _trusts_ Kageyama, somehow, to at least have his back in battles. He's saved Hinata's life more than once already. And someone having the ability to track someone else in their group… that makes Hinata a little wary, too. It's a pretty big power imbalance, isn't it?

"It's only used to track, it can't _control_ me," Kageyama points out, back to glaring at Tsukishima. Holding his hand out, he adds, "and I've been a warden for years, not part of the circle, not apostate. So I think I should have the right to destroy it."

"Blood magic has the ability to _control minds_ ," Tsukishima argues, "shouldn't we have some kind of insurance in case he goes rogue?!"

Yamaguchi looks about as uncomfortable with this conversation as Hinata is, looking away and fiddling with his hands instead of engaging. Hinata sighs, and tries to think of a good compromise.

"Well… it's only for tracking down rogue mages, right?" He starts, waiting for a confirming nod from the others. "So… since Kageyama is the oldest one of the wardens amongst us, and we're in the middle of a blight… he's not exactly going to be running away, will he? And what if you fall in battle or something, Tsukishima? Would you want the darkspawn to be able to track the wardens down because of your own stubbornness? And besides," he says firmly, "none of us should have that kind of control over another. It's not right."

"You heard me say _mind control_ , right?" Tsukishima says, still holding the vial close, "and it's not like darkspawn can work a phylactery!"

"You don't know that for sure, and Hinata has a point," Yamaguchi's soft voice filters through the tension in the air, and he places a gentle hand on Tsukishima's shoulder. "And… though it makes me anxious… Kageyama's… right, too. He's a warden, not a circle mage or apostate. If anyone should hold his phylactery, it's the senior-most warden."

Which, in this case, is Kageyama himself.

Kageyama's hand is still held out expectantly, and he shakes it impatiently, silently demanding to be given the vial.

Tsukishima takes a few moments longer to stare at each of their faces, but finally, reluctantly, gives up and hands the vial to Kageyama, glaring at him the entire time he does it. "If he kills us all in the end, don't go blaming me," he mutters, angrily latching the flap on his leather case closed again, and shoving it in his pack.

"I'll take next watch," he adds, taking his pack with him as he sets up at the opposite end of their little camp, staring out into the dark.

Kageyama wastes no time in snatching up the vial, and immediately throwing it to the ground, smashing it underneath his foot, destroying it completely. "I'm never going to be controlled by anyone, ever again," he mutters, momentarily catching Hinata's eye.

"…thanks."

Hinata doesn't know what to say in response, so he just nods, watching as Kageyama and Yamaguchi both settle back into their respective bedrolls.

Suddenly exhausted, and with his watch officially switched off to Tsukishima, Hinata moves to the only empty space nearby, on the other side of Tanaka, and lays down on the grass.

As he slowly begins to calm down, he hears Tanaka's quiet voice.

"You did the right thing. Not right, to have power over your companions. Not like that."

Hinata thinks that's about the most he's heard Tanaka speak – if he doesn't count the retelling of how he ended up in the cage earlier – but he doesn't have time to think about it, because his body is already dragging him down into the mental abyss of sleep.

 

…

**Codex Updated: Kageyama's Story Unlocked**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so first of all APOLOGIES for having been gone for like. Two months. With no updates. School & work & holidays and hOO BOY. But!! I'm back, and I'll get at least this and another companion fic ch up (I swear we'll get to the point soon where it's not off-and-on main-fic and companion-fic chs) in the next week or so. But Monday starts up school & work again so... no promises for the next three months (although!!! I will try my best to squeeze in some time! and after that things OUGHT to calm down a LOT sooo)
> 
> In other news Ro is, as always, an amazing beta (bless you) and I hope you all enjoy the ch! I'd love to hear your thoughts so feel free to drop me a line here or on tumblr cloudmonstachopper. Happy 2017 everybody!

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment or kudos if you're enjoying it so far ^^
> 
> Come visit me over at cloudmonstachopper on tumblr, and if you want me to see anything you do with this series, just tag it "#vball babs origins" :D


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